10/07/2007
Irreversible demographic change
The speed at which the population is changing and its effects on Singaporeans is an area of great concern. Does the govt need to consult the people, getting a referendum for such a major change that can affect their lives adversely?
Or as Josephine Teo said, when the govt has carefully considered the problem and think that it is good for the people, it has all the right to go ahead with it?
This demographic change is going to affect those living now and the future generation for good or for the worst. It is no joking matter.
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15 comments:
You need to trust the Govt to do the best for you. It is not for you to question so much. Just obey, say yes, keep quiet and above all, have confidence in the people you have voted to govern you. After all you are paying them millions to decide for you. They must be right, so Redbean, you better keep your mouth firmly shut.
i am a student of history. and i often marvel at the forces of history, how events will lead from one to another and to its natural end, its own destruction.
a close society will lead to its own destruction by being closed. an open society will lead to its own destruction by being open. that is the natural law.
everything that man does, after careful considerations, will be good or appear to be good. in the end what is good becomes bad. what is bad becomes good.
america will be destroyed by its openness, so will uk, australia and europe. singapore too will be destroyed in the process. and hopefully a new and better will emerge from the ruins.
If you are as good a student of history as you claim, you would have stated that the very things that destroy societies is collectivism—i.e. where the bigger gang bullies the minority, grabs power, fucks with the freedom and liberty of everyone—including their own so-called "members", and proceeds to run and control everyones' lives.
The key to survival of the human species is for people to realise that everyone is an individual, and is entitled to do as they please; as long as they don't interfere with the property rights of others.
However the best you are able to muster are vague theories you call "natural law".
As far as I know "openess" never destroyed any civilisations. It is collectivism which is the evil monster—when people from big, powerful groups, they need not take any personal responsibility for their individual actions.
They are able to pass the blame onto The Group. They dissociate from their own deep sense of right and wrong, and will even kill their fellow man because of Group Dogma.
The way around this is to allow everyone to be free, and to protect the individual from the overwhelming power of any Groups. Keeping the borders open to allow free passage of humans, ideas, capital, goods and services is a guard against collectivist tyranny. As long as ALL MARKETS are FREE, the human race has a chance.
Redbean, you always harp about karmic retribution, well this is at at work. Your forefathers came here and in time ursurped the local population in many areas. Now their descendents are having their rights ursurped by another bunch of new migrants. The wheel has now come full circle.
hi anonymous,
life goes round in circles just like empires rose and fell. one thing leads to another. one day rich the next day poor. one day alive the next day dead.
how our ancestors came here got to be looked at from the correct historical perspectives. they were the poor coolies who were invited by the colonial powers to be here to do the dirty work. they did not usurp the rights of the locals. the usurpers were the colonialists. they took everything from the locals, including their dignity and self respect. what happened is just the legacy of the colonialists.
the coolies came without any ill attention except to find work, any kind of work, to feed themselves. the new migrant workers are also doing the same. they just want to work and make a living.
who is the author of the whole scheme? the colonialists were doing it in the past. today it is the govt that is doing it.
Of course you can say what you say Redbean, because you look at it from the Chinese perspective. Try looking at it from the Malay perspective, and you will see a totally different picture. I don't believe karma is so discerning as to distinguish between colonialists and so-called poor coolies. It is also interesting to note that most of those who moan so much about the FTs are the Chinese themselves. The Malays are not that disturbed because they have seen this happen to them before, so it is nothing new. When the new migrants (incl the ones from China) outnumber the local born Chinese, you will finally have a taste of what it's like to be a minority.
hi anonymous,
i understand how you feel. if i were you i will feel the same way too. but is it right to blame the chinese or indians for being here?
what had happened is too complicated and yes irreversible and we would have to live it out and make the best out of it. i don't feel the same way as you do. true.
how do you think the red indians and the aborigines in america and australia feel? same thing. what is the solution? all pack up and go back from where they come from?
Please note that not once have I metioned the word blame in my posts. All I'm saying is that you guys are just getting a taste of your own medicine. You can draw your own conclusions.
i doubt so. the educated and competitive locals need not have to worry abt this trend becos it enhances their careers in a while that they need not seek jobs in foreign land to achieve their purpose of career building. moreover the purpose of these changes were not meant to displace/ disadvantage the masses but to complement/ strengthen the workforce. so it is win-win for all. however it seems that the minority on the fringe particularly the unskilled, aged or the less motivated (drop-outs), may feel the heat of this wave of global competition and higher living standards more intensely.. that's probably why the flurry of new policies and retraining schemes to assist this group.
You forgot the other aspect ie. NS. The new migrants, those first gen PRs or those on WP/EP, will not have to do NS, while the local born will have to. This one affects all the local born be it highly skilled or lowly skilled. Also, don't forget that when the next economic crisis hits, these migrants always have the option to go back home. Otoh, the locals with no other place to go will have to bear the full brunt of the crisis, probably suffering pay cuts, CPF cuts, retrenchment, the full works while living costs continue to rise.
The quietest foreigners in S'pore are the Russians. They've been going about their business, mostly unnoticed and buying up a lot of the real estate—all this whilst the focus of the pissed-off xenophobic sheeple are screaming "justice" for corrupt Indonesians.
It goes to show you how really dumb the mainstream is.
The best is yet to come, and everyone benefits (unless they are from the Whine & Whinge Fraternity). Income taxes are coming down—probably the first 100k + of income will be TAX FREE, however the GST will be raised to 10%.
Every student of economics knows: "People respond to incentives"
This fiscal change will attract more foreigners—especially wealthy ones, and the "can-do" opportunists. You can bet on that.
i see so many youngsters from north asia, vietnam etc working in singapore filling the vacuum/shortage left by our boys doing NS; and after NS our boys will likely be working under these lucky foreigners who has 2 years headstart and job seniority. but in an economic crisis, it may get worse, for as long as the low waged foreigners remained our boys would have less options in a scarced job market. the older generation is lucky to have avoided this problem.
Conscription—the forced labour of young men into "national defence" is a form of slavery.
And the foreigners get a "free kick" by having their kids excluded from this slavery.
It makes perfect sense: if the govt told foreigners—you can come here, but we are going to enslave your sons into conscription—fuck! Who is going to come, and bring their family and kids?
And dumb-ass Singaporeans still support the govt because of this.
Dumb bastards. Mothers should be screaming for the state to leave their babies alone!
in a meritocratic society, if we can wish them away, the lower class and not so smart would have been wished away. they are the burden of our society and will keep slowing down our progress.
let's get rid of them and run as fast as we can. no soft socialist thinking allowed.
we will then truly be a nation of only brilliant people. no need to sweat to hear the kpkb on 2c bus fare increase.
That is patently untrue. You should revisit your economics and liberty studies ;-)
In a free society, where free markets are allowed to do its work—NATURALLY—as the saying goes A rising tide floats all boats.
Having smart, ambitious, wealthy and pro-active individuals in a society, who do their best by being creative, competitive AND cooperative in the market benefits all. The wants, needs and desires of consumers are met by ACTION, and it is the humans with the "can-do" spirit which take the initiatives to get the job done. Without these kick-arse people, the world, and specifically S'pore would be worse off. You can't rely on the govt to provide most of what we need to live—that comes from the private sector; from especially gifted and highly motivated private individuals.
But the people who benefit the most are those who are not as smart, rich, creative or competitive.
Where would it be better to be a beggar, poor person or not-so-smart individual? In fucked up arsehole-of-the-world-Hell-on-Earth Rwanda... or a wealthy place like Singapore?
The fact is demographics do change. For e.g. In Western societies, of the past Asian were under-represented, and a very small minority. But that's all changed now.
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