The Power Wheel

Last Wednesday Singapore banned US-based “pick-up artist” Julien Blanc from entering the country to conduct seminars. For a guy reputed to be the "rock-star" of the dating game, he's should have been more discreet. What he should have done was to hit on a little old lady quietly as a bogus tour guide, and the Immigration and Checkpoint Authority (ICA) would grant him entry permit faster than you can say "Pikachu!" And throw him residential papers for good measure, duly endorsed by a gullible female member of parliament.

There's nothing original about Blanc. The stuff he "teaches" are all old hat, trashy lines from juvenile tabloids. Samples of his "course material":

• How To Pick Up Girls From Open To Close;
• How To Convey The Supercharged Self;
• How To Make Yourself 1000% More Interesting;
• How To Never Get Paralysed & Get Better With Girls Faster, etc 

Even his Power and Control Wheel is a rip off from the Domestic Abuse Intervention Project. This chart shows you the kinds of behavior abusers use to get and keep control over their partners. If you change the last word to "citizens", you can appreciate the allusion is too close for comfort. It is no coincidence that Chan Chun Sing, who is Minister of Social and Family Development, chimed in in defence: "Violence against innocent people is unlawful and totally unacceptable. We cannot allow people to perpetuate such unlawful activities in our country."

How about these types of violence we have grown accustomed to?

• Using Intimidation - letters of demand when Service and Conservancy Charges (S&CC) are in arrears
• Using Emotional Abuse - remarks like "daft", "ignorant" and "the spurs are not stuck on your hinds"
• Using Isolation - denial of access to lawyer when "helping in police investigations"
• Minimizing, Denying And Blaming - shifting responsibility, as in "not my fishball stick" syndrome
• Using Children - exploiting Special Needs Children as human shields from heckling;
• Using Male Privilege - Singapore not ready for a Indian female prime minister;
• Using Economic Abuse - withholding our CPF to invest in bum deals;
• Using Coercion and Threats - send in the army in event of a "freak" election

Speaking to host Chris Cuomo on CNN about a photo that looks like he is choking a woman, Blanc said it was a "horrible horrible attempt at humour". And that it was taken out of context. The last excuse has been used once too often. And not just by Blanc.