9/10/2006

this is our country, this is our home

Do we invite foreigners to our homes and allow them to insult us and tell us to get out? This seems to be the latest development in the game of foreign talents and welcoming more people to our shores, as citizens. Many well meaning people have been singing praises of foreigners and how important they are to our survival in the future. And this message has sunk into the heads of many foreigners and Singaporeans alike, that we need them to save us. And they believe so. Some Singaporeans also believe so. And foreigners are even telling us that if we are uncompetitive, want high salaries and less work, then we should ship out. They are willing to come here to work harder and for less. The remarkable thing is that some Singaporeans do agree wholeheartedly to this kind of argument. There are Singaporeans who are working overseas as foreign talents and understand how tough it is to be foreigners competing against the locals. And they have achieved some success in doing so. And they empathise with the foreigners working here. They understand the logic that more work and less pay is the only way to fight the competition. Singaporeans can no longer rely on the stupid idea that they must be paid first world salaries when others are willing to work for less. Admittedly this reasoning is logical and true. There is no pleasant alternative in a globalised world. Singaporeans must work more and be prepared to earn less, except for positions where foreigners are not allowed to compete in. For such occupations, they can go on as before and keep increasing the salaries at will. Would there be any profession where the incumbents dare to say they are over worked? Or after being given more perks and increments, have the audacity to ask for less work and responsibilities? Now that this new living mantra is the accepted conventional truth, it can only be expected that life will be a bit tougher for the lazy or less talented Singaporeans. So what can we expect them to do? Are they expected to tighten their belts and fight with foreigners for jobs here, asking for lesser pay? And is this a fair equation? Foreigners are hungry, have no stake or responsibilities here. They can live with less. Should we allow them to proceed to compete with our own people for jobs? Are we saying that time has changed and Singaporeans have to look backward, to a level of living like in the past? The other alternative is for talented Singaporeans to rough it out like our foreign talents. Go forth and seek for new pastures. And there are jobs galores overseas. Singaporeans are in high demand as foreign talents and logically will be getting better pay in foreign lands. Strange isn't it? Why are Singaporeans in great demand overseas but not wanted in their homeland? Or is this a game of musical chairs? We export our unappreciated talents overseas and welcome foreigners to take their places. Would we reach a stage that the more able Singaporeans will be found living overseas and their homes rented and occupied by foreigners? If this is the likely development, what kind of nation or society will we become? Citizens of the world? The Filipino and Indonesian maids went overseas to earn foreign exchange and left behind an empty nest. Some returned to find their nests occupied by strangers and they were no longer wanted or could not fit into the new equation. Would we pay the same price if this happens to us? And very likely the price will be much higher. For instead of the women folks being abroad, our able men folks are the one that are missing from home. A home without a man or a nation without its men or talented men can have unimaginable consequences. This is our country, this is our home. What would it be like if our homes are now overseas and our country becomes the homes of foreigners?

15 comments:

Anonymous said...

There is nothing strange. The world today is a very different one.Those who are flexible and willing to adapt to the new environment will survive and posisbly even flourish. Those who resist change and insist with old methods and ways of thinking will wilter and perish. The choice is yours.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

that is very true. but some basic fundamentals will never change eg the greed and selfishness of man. the concept of race, religion and nation state. perhaps the latter three may change one day.

it is always good to be nimble and flexible and possess a marketable skill.

Anonymous said...

The concept of nation and state is already under threat. The passport someone holds is of no consequence if that person is talented, and better still fluch with cash. Every country on the planet will fall over themselves to offer residency to such a person.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

for the superrich and talented, it is now really a borderless world. they sleep one night here one night there, have lunch in hongkong, dinner in tokyo etc.

different league. to the masses things will still be the same.

Anonymous said...

The masses are of no consequence.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

the masses are like water. they can turn into a tsunami.

Anonymous said...

Not the Singaporean masses. Thy're more like froth. That's why I say they're of no consequence and also why the Lee dynasty will continue to perpetuate their rule in the country for some time to come :-)

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

man proposes, heaven disposes.

whatever will be will be.

Anonymous said...

God helps those who helps themselves. For as long as Singaporeans choose to remain the docile slave boys that they are, the heavens will continue to allow the Lee dynasty to exert their tyrannical rule over them.

Anonymous said...

You're getting carried away. Without Old Lee we would have been nothing, nothing at all. The reason why you can sit here and smirk at him is because he bled for you.

I'm not a particular PAP lover, but I tell it as I see it, and you're not according respect where it deserves. If I told you to die now for your country, would you? Lee would have had done it; he gave his whole life for it. Now we have a 41-year-old miracle of a country that is ours.

You, on the other hand, can sit here very comfortably and smirk, pleased with your own intelligence.

Now you might wish to impose a form of judgment on me, and tell me that I've fallen under his hegemony, I'm a product of his generation, etc, etc. Don't be quick to judge. There are many imperfections within every government. We happen to have the fewer ones. We have leaders who genuinely love the bloody country.

Anonymous said...

Cherche, you're entitled to your opinion and so am I. To me, he's nothing more than an arrogant, power-mad, despotic tyrant who just doesn't know when to quit. Not to worry, as with every one else, his time to meet his Creator draws nearer with every passing day. The day he kicks the bucket will be a day of rejoicing for me and many other Singaporeans who have suffered under his tyranny. Let us then see whether he's going to challenge his Creator to put on knuckle dusters and meet him in a cul de sac.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

i would rather look at issues than the personalities behind them. personalities are but humans and do make mistakes and also have vested interests.

it is best to discuss issues as they are. then we can be a little more objective.

Anonymous said...

But aren't the issues created by those personalities ? So you really can't separate one from the other, or can you ?

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

agree that it is difficult. but when the element of a person is consciously removed from a discussion, it is easier to deal with it with less emotions or to personalised an issue.

a person can be involved in many issues and decisions. treating issues can also separate things individually for discussions.

Chua Chin Leng aka redbean said...

how about this song,

'this is your country, it is our home...we are foreigners, we are foreigners...