5/25/2008
Something slips by
We were ruled by the colonial masters and fought for our independence, to be free people, and to be able to determine our own future. Has anything changed? Yes, we got rid of our colonial rulers. We were no longer ruled. Did we?
Have we gone to sleep and woke up to realise that we are being ruled again? We are now talking of the rulers and the ruled, or the rulers and the many rules. And the rulers are not denying that they are the rulers. Or at least no one thinks that such a perception is misplaced and needed to be clarified. Maybe the rulers are happy to let it be, to continue ruling. And the people also contented to let it be, to continue to be ruled.
Is this political development, progress? Or have we gone back to the medieval days where kings and princes were born to be great and the people to bow in their presence? Long live the king!
After more than 40 years of independence, this feeling of being ruled is creeping in and surprisingly very comfortable. Is this the mentality of Singaporeans, that they loved to be ruled, needed to be ruled, and wanted to be ruled? Without being ruled, without rulers, they will feel unease and lost?
In the next general election the campaign should be, 'Elect your Rulers!' Then we need not live with the hypocrisy that we are electing people's representatives to Parliament.
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3 comments:
> Have we gone to sleep and woke up to realise that we are being ruled again? <
I think you're jumping the gun there. Most people are still asleep. Shhh... not so loud, you'll wake them.
States have this nasty characteristic of expanding its power over time. Looking at the history of mankind, I have not discovered any sovereign state which doesn't do this.
Therre is no way to limit the expansion of power of a state over time. There are "theories" like seperation of powers -- especially an independent judiciary, a constitution, regualr elections, and of course "democracy"...and so on.
These theories look great on paper, and tenured academics knock themselves out by expounding and expatiating on political theory -- the most popular being "democracy". Intellectual nut-jobs and buffoons like MIT's Noam Chomsky have made a lucrative career from talking complete nonsense.
My position has never changed -- I've always claimed that all states are illegal entities and should be dismantled ASAP.
But people are asleep. Those who think they are awake are actually still slumbering.
You cannot reign in a state, or try to reform it. The only reason it hasn't swallowed most of the people and thier lives up is because of CAPITALISM. It is CAPITALISM which brings you your freedom -- especially economic freedom, i.e. free from dependency -- and all the good things in life people take for granted -- from food, to clothing to medicines, infrastructure, security... you name it capitlaism produced it.
Don't agree with me? Fine, I urge you to consider states which have no or minimal capitalist activity:
North Korea, Cambodia, for e.g. You will notice the state is everywhere in these places -- rules, regulation, death penalty for disobedience etc. And the people are poor and not free. But there's lots of state power around, but little or no capitalism.
How does a state survive and self-perpetuate?
It taxes. It taxes the production of capitalism. Or worse still, it engages in captialist activity -- for profit, using its absolute territorial powers to limit or kill off competition.
It [the State] has taken on a vast mass of new duties and responsibilities; it has spread out its powers until they penetrate to every act of the citizen, however secret; it has begun to throw around its operations the high dignity and impeccability of a State religion; its agents become a separate and superior caste, with authority to bind and loose, and their thumbs in every pot. But it still remains, as it was in the beginning, the common enemy of all well-disposed, industrious and decent men. -- H L Mencken
They are people's representatives alright. They represent the people to collect $14,000 every month from the coffers of the gahmen. The only difference is that they put the $14,000 into their own bank accounts instead of the people's bank accounts.
$15k is not much for an MP. they have a lot of expenses to pay, the helpers and donations for all kinds of functions in the estate, even funeral wakes. i think they spend quite a big portion of their allowance for such things.
MPs are not getting a good deal actually. but it is the other perks that keep them happy like directorships or chairmanships in private and public listed companies.
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