Singapore: Blog                                       Ranking             Owner Mr Brown                               1281                     Lee Kin Mun         The Online Citizen               1641                     Choo Zheng Xi Talking Cock                         1819                     Unknown   Malaysia: Malaysia Today                    61                          Raja Petra Kamarrudin     Che Det                                80                          Dr Mahathir Mohamad Lim Kit Siang                       177                        Lim Kit Siang   Analysis: The above traffic rankings were obtained from alexa which is updated on a weekly basis. The rankings are based on local traffic only which does not take into account traffic from other countries. For example, Dr Mahathir’s blog, Che Det is actually ranked 1061 in Singapore. There are more Singaporean visitors to a Malaysian political blog than a local one ! We did not include news blogs like Malaysiakini which strictly speaking, are not socio-political blogs. Initially we hesitate to include Malaysia Today which is more of a news aggregator than a blog. However, considering the fact that it is made famous or rather infamous by the writings of RPK, it will be apt to classify it as a personal blog. The alternative media has been quoted by many observers as playing a crucial role in contributing to the political tsunami which engulfs Malayisa politics in the last General Election. Pundits wonder if Singapore, which a higher internet penetration rate, will suffer the same fate as well. Though over 80% of Singaporeans have internet connections, the figures above shown that we are less than 21 times as politically savvy as our Malaysian brothers. The top political blog in Malaysia has a traffic rank of 61 compared to Singapore at 1281 or 1641 if you choose an orthodox political blog. On the other hand, Xiaxue’s blog is ranked at 121 in Singapore and 575 in Malaysia. As James Gomez rightly point out a few days earlier, use of the internet by political parties thus far has not been able to make an impact on electoral design. The truth is, alternative media has little or no influence amongst Singaporeans as compared to Malaysia simply because we Singaporeans are a bunch of apathetic lot who prefer indulging ourselves in the soap opera between two bimbos rather than politics of the nation which concerns our daily lives. The PAP need not fret over the rising anti-establishment sentiment in cyberspace as of yet as it has been shown that it is restricted only to a minority of politically aware netizens. It is almost unlikely their votes against the PAP will translate into a “freak” election result if the pathetic rankings continue till 2011. Widespread political apathy among Singaporeans will ensure that the threat to PAP’s hegemony will be kept to a manageable level. Yet it is a double-edged sword. The PAP is also finding it difficult and frustrating to engage Singaporeans. The p65 blog set up by young PAP MPs after the last general election has a woefully disgusting traffic rank of only 38,992. The Online Citizen, ran by a group of reputable writers in society adopting a centrist non-partisan approach to socio-political issues in Singapore is the closest we have to Malaysiakini at the moment. In spite of its constant promotion by the mainstream media, it is unlikely its traffic rank will surpass Xiaxue’s blog anytime soon. Singapore may be the richest country in Southeast Asia, but we are definitely the most politically naive nation in the region ! Even the docile Malaysians have been awakened by the internet revolution, demanding for change.  In Singapore, it seems that (political) ignorance is a bliss after all. It may be a temporary relief for the PAP, but its bliss will not last much longer. Politically apathetic citizens who take no interest in the country’s affairs are usually those who have no qualms packing up their bags to leave for greener pastures elsewhere should the opportunity arises.