Give me nonsensical Naples over sterile Singapore

Naples is dirty, noisy, haphazard, and full of kamikaze scooter drivers. It is also sensual, liberating, and jolly. But that doesn’t seem to appeal to many people today, who prefer everything to be ordered, measured; all uncertainty removed. In city form, it’s known as Singapore: unlike Naples, everything there is clean, tidy, and works. It’s also a sterile, soulless, mini dictatorship.

J.G. Farrell’s wonderful book The Singapore Grip describes the fall of Singapore during the second world war. There are many parallels between the city back then and Naples now: the elegant decay and human vitality. The title of the book refers to an infamous practice the local prostitutes employed.

But today, Singapore has cleaned itself up. It is held aloft as a shining example of how an efficient city should be. The vice-like grip has gone macro.