APEC 2024 Peru. Biden shafted to a corner in the back row. Xi in front row next to Peru's President
2/14/2009
How benevolent is our govt?
The govt just announced the resilience budget worth more than $20b to help the people in such a difficult time. Should the people be grateful? We heard the call that we are all family, looking and caring for each other, helping each other and making life better for everyone. I did not hear wrongly.
Then you look at the HDB policy, market pricing to max what they can get from the buyers. They used all public resources to monopolise public housing to squeeze it out as much as they could from the people they called family. And when you complain they said it is affordable because you can pay with all your CPF. Hey, the CPF is people’s retirement money! What happens if they have nothing left for retirement and hospital bills?
Then the Health Ministry got worried. With so much money being taken to pay for flats, better lock up some in case they need to pay for hospital bills. And there goes another chunk into the Medisave. Then another proclamation, Singaporeans got no problem paying for medical bills. Then another ministry got worried. What if they got no money to retire and demand public assistance? Better lock up for this before there is no money left.
Hey, what about me, the one who contributes to the CPF? I got nothing left for myself. Just too bad lah. And don’t expect charity or free lunch from the govt. The govt does not believe in encouraging crutch mentality. As long as the people got money to pay for HDB flats, pay for hospital bills, the two big ticket items, that’s good enough. Oh now got compulsory CPF Life and with easy options except no option to opt out.
So now all the money got locked up for some good reasons, and here comes the recession and people got no more savings to fall back on, we have the resilience package. How much will each get and how long will it last?
So there you are, a benevolent govt, and a people with one of the highest savings and all crying money not enough.
"Benevolence" is never the function of a proper government.
ReplyDeleteThe government is the territorial monopolist of legal force and ultimate arbiter with the legal monopoly on final judgment in areas of conflict.
Therefore it is nonsense to expect a government to be "benevolent". Only a total idiot will believe this.
MM said that in Singapore we do not need or see 'soup kitchens' dishing out food to destitute and homeless. True, but local charities, like Buddhist Lodge, are doing just that job for the Government, feeding needy families and foreign workers trying to save a little money to send home.
ReplyDeleteDo we have beggars too? Of course not lah!
Lost Citizen
i also remember one minister, forgot which one, saying, the govt had done enough. those who need help should go to the charities.
ReplyDeletei am still trying to fish out which minister said this and post it as a reminder to all. i thought it should be the charities to say that they had done enough and the needies should go to the govt for help.
the charities don't collect taxes and never pledge to serve the people. it is the govt, elected by the people, collects taxes from the people, to help the needies. how could he said that and pass the buck to the charities?
unbelieveable.
matilah is absolutely right. Politicians are slimeballs who are only preoccupied with their own interests. So, no matter which govt you elect, sooner or later they will all descend to down to the same level. Instead of crying out for a benevolent govt, the correct thing to do is to take charge of your own life, so you never ever have to depend on politicians for anything. That is the epitome of true freedom.
ReplyDeleteI intend to grow the "Matilah" brand globally this year. For starters, I've created The Schadenfreude Times now available for download on my blog. Issue #1 deals with drugs and is a continuation of a discussion with someone named "gutless" on another forum.
ReplyDeleteI'm working on issue 2, which will deal with the extremely sensitive topic of Bleeding The Children. There is little doubt in my mind that many of today's kids are going to be killed in wars — as a result of govt's "economic stimulus" packages which are nothing more than borrowing HUGE AMOUNTS of money that will become a debt (in more ways than one) that the children and grand children will have to pay.
Firstly, the size of total global debt — the grown-up children will be paying stifling taxes to fund a growing boomer-class which has had the value of their assets wiped out, the IOU's and other un-funded future liabilities for retirement and health care, the unforeseen and thus unfunded replacement of infrastructure as it wears out due to the increase in use and population, and of course the huge debt taken to "rescue" the people who have created the mess in the first place.
Add to that the growing amount of civil unrest now in Europe. No doubt this will spread to other countries. Govts will impose trade barriers and eventually these economic and political posturings will lead to wars, which of course will be fought by the children of today, and possibly their grand children.
I pride myself in being ahead of the curve.
About 3 year's ago, a few people on a libertarian blog/forum hantamed me upside down for stating that their precious houses — at the time experiencing phenomenal increases in value — were going to crash, and the amount of debt used to finance those homes would pose a fatal threat, I was called all sorts of nasty names, and like redbean various bloggers performed "psychoanalysis" on my person, and just like redbean, allowed their imaginations to run wild: speculating on the type of human being I'm supposed to be.
Do these people believe they have "magical powers"? Oops... I'd better stop... just incase I myself am accused of "psychoanalysis". :-)
hi mate, yes, i support you to promote the matilah brand. that will give you some purpose in life other than spending time in soi cowboy : )
ReplyDeletehey the bloggers here adore you man. nobody is psychoanalysing you lah. you are just being too sensitive and paranoid. enjoy the attention man. you are a celebrity here. don't feel insecure, just feel good about it ok? : )
Aiyah, don't be so defensive lah. My skin is too thick to feel 'sensitive' about stuff which will emotionally devastate the average person.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, my Soi Cowboy days are over. I've bid farewell to The Land of Smiles.