Iphone/ Ipods/ Itouch/ Iwhatever - Greatest excuse to Playing Dumb in the MRT

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If you are ever pregnant, did you ever observed how people react whenever you take the train or the bus? You know the feeling. The twitches, the sudden uncomfortable body language, the sudden acting classes they have been taking and being put in to use at appropriate timings? Did you notice their body language, their gaze and such? Do you notice and observe if people are willing to give up their seats for you? Or do they just wait and see if anyone else makes the first move?

These are the kind of actions that I come across everytime I take the MRT or the Bus. Now and then, I would meet really nice people (especially adults) who would quickly just offer me their seat. Some do it very shyly - they would literally leap from their seat the moment they spy you in front of them and disappear within the crowds the next moment. Some will case a furtive gaze at their lefts and rights and if no one does anything - they would give their seat up. Some are Singaporeans, some are Indian foreigners.


However, Most Tertiary Students Seem to be a Different Story
Ironically, for all the education we have been pumping into our schools; I noticed the ones who do not give up their seats are tertiary students! I have noticed many times and more often than not that secondary students will give up their seats (perhaps it's because they are in their school uniforms? I hope not!). The primary school students would be busy chatting with one another while standing but most tertiary students (not all) would grab the priority seat without a second thought before quickly whipping out their iphones/ipods/itouch/iwhatever and pretend to be solely immersed in their own world! Rarely I have come across tertiary students giving up their seat to me (regardless of priority) but most would treat you none-existent because they are so immersed in their iwhatevers!

Now the thing is, these students are fully aware of what they are doing. They are aware they should give up their priority seats when they spy someone else in need (e.g. elderly, pregnant, disabled, etc) but somehow, for some strange reason, do not do so. Many times I took advantage of awareness of citizen journalism (aka STOMP) by just holding up my iphone towards their direction while playing a game or surfing net. Now this gives the impression as though I am going to take a photo but no, I do not do so. I just want to experiment if these students are fully aware of what they are doing. Lo and befold, their attention is usually immediate.

All of a sudden, they would stop and start to peer from their sides at me. If these students are really and seriously immersed in their own little world, they sure are fast in picking up this movement. Next, they would do an uncomfortable shift in their seats and pretend to be involved in their little iwhatever still but would still peer cautiously now and then if my iphone is still facing their direction. All these and still remaining in the seat.

So why do they still refuse to give up their seats? It's a question that really eludes me.