I called my broadband customer service today.  As usual, it was a sweet female voice broadcasting the latest promotional offer.  It was so sweet that I almost wanted to marry the girl immediately, even though it was just a machine talking.  After pressing thru a few numbers, I reached a human operator.  As usual, s/he was so courteous that I almost broke into tears.  They were so friendly that they won't let me go with just a simple bye bye because they have to complete all the due diligence in the handbook - just to make sure that there is no room for complaint.  As usual, as usual.

Back in the 80's, there was no such thing as customer service here.  Actually, we were even famous for having rude sales persons.  Then, now, 25 years later, we have customer service.  Not only that, the whole city is covered with sweet, courteous voices and friendly (almost intimate) sales persons who want to make sure that every dollar you've spent is worth the value.

It's not only in the consumer business.  In big companies, we have 360 review, employee empowerment, employee leadership, collaborative relationships, work-life balance, corporate social responsibility, equal employment opportunity, etc., to uphold dignity.  Seems like in everywhere, everyone is treating everyone else nicely like brothers and sisters.

So, heaven is here?  No.

We like fantasies, so we create fantasies for our own pleasure.  Perhaps worse, we can't find intimacy in real life anymore now, so we buy some for fulfilment.

When was the last time that you cry for your parents?  But many cry easily in movies.  When was the last time that you do feel you owe your friend a sorry?  But we contribute generously to people whom we don't know in charity.  Do you know your colleagues?  But many memorise the biography of artistes down to digital accuracy.  Do you still feel for your life?  But we are surrounded by life-improvement products in all medium.  When was the last time that you find life is miraculous because you see flowers in the wild?  Do you still remember nature?  Can anyone achieve work-life balance if not either to cheat others to do the work for you or slow down the earth's rotation?

Sure, we know it.  We all know it.  But there is no exit.  Perhaps we need to unlearn the humane side of our nature in order to survive a competitive environment.  Or perhaps some of us are so indulged in fantasies that they don't really know the difference anymore.

I hope that we don't need some disaster to remind us about love and family.  I hope that we don't need to force play "friendly" behaviour at work and back home as animals.  Don't try to turn your office into heaven and don't pretend to be angels - we are just humans on Earth.