APEC 2024 Peru. Biden shafted to a corner in the back row. Xi in front row next to Peru's President
11/14/2009
We need a few 'stupid' Singaporeans
Capitaland is going to build more affordable homes for the ordinary people in China. This set my eyeballs rolling. More affordable homes and in China, why not Singapore? And what is the definition of affordable? 30% or 35% of a person's income for 30 years?
Our HDB used to build truly affordable homes for the people and the people greatly benefitted from it. For that, they voted for the govt for the last 45 years. But things are changing. The formula for affordability is becoming a farce. Nobody believes in it any more, to the extent that the word affordable is becoming a frightening word, a scornful word.
For people who still go around mouthing that word, I wonder if they themselves believe in it. Unfortunately the truth is that they really and sincerely believe in it. For these are people who could buy 10 or 20 units of public housing flats with one year of their incomes. Only the losers are crying foul.
Would successful people like Leong Mun Leong of Capitaland have second thought and said, what's going on, I have everything I want in life, I have more than enough, I have done and achieve enough, maybe it is time to do some national service, build really 'affordable' homes for the ordinary people of Singapore. Prove that public housing can be better and cheaper, and not dwindling in size. That would be a great mission.
But such an idealistic mission is meant only for 'stupid' people who believe in little ideals like serving the people and taking care of the people, giving the people a good life. This is opposed to those who are too talented and too pragmatic, and wanting more and more for themselves.
We have many successful people like Liew Mun Leong. What we need is to find among them some 'stupid' people to serve the people and thinking for the people, to redefine what is a good life. Not the current formula of working till one drops dead and paying for a whole life for a pigeon hole, and having no savings for retirement when the savings rate is more than 35% of a person's income. How could it be when our savings rate is the highest in Asia, next only to Japan?
The basket is leaking, a big hole, or many holes!
"CHINA may not have a democratic system but its people are currently more interested in obtaining higher standards of living than they are in votes and freedom of speech."
ReplyDeleteGreat, PRC PRs can buy cheap property back home, rent out their S'pore property, earn big time. What abt S'poreans? Can we do that too and retire in China, clear out whatever balance in yr CPF, renounce citizenship? I think our "affordable" flats is just a way of tying down yr citizenship, Don't do the conventional thing and try to think out of the box.
ReplyDeleteI saw this coming in the 1970s, when the "Two-Is-Enough" policy was introduced.
ReplyDeleteMy main consideration then was that the Man whom we so revered had openly liken himself to be a Machiavellian, the ruthless strategist of political governance.
His words to the effect went something like this: "I had rather people fear me than love me ..."
Fear will instill obedience no doubt, but it will also breed hatred. When hatred reaches a critical mass, it will be unleashed and explode with full force. Nothing will be able to stop its torrential momentum. The outcome can only be disastrous. But it is uniquely strange why after 40 years, this hatred has yet to reach its critical mass.
I do not wish to find out why the critical mass has not been breached but only hope to get the hell out of here when the sun still shines.
Therefore, I have prepared myself and my family for this impending "To-Each-His-Own" or "You-Die-Your-Own-Business" policy which is inevitable. My early assessment has just been verified when the demigod openly admitted that "Social divide is inevitable", which is a horrendous revelation of worst things to come.
My children have already been tucked away in some nice and comfortable, free and easy far away truly first world countries, no more within the grip, manipulation and exploitation of this Machiavellian Animal Kingdom of Perpetual Suffering-In-Silence and Perpetual Rat Race that only a few self-indulging, self-enriching, top-ranking elites call the shots all the time.
People's Action Party has become People's Agonising Parties. Believe or not, its up to you.
Now is just about the right time for me and my spouse to denounce citizenship, so that we can totally withdraw all our CPF money, and say "Sayonara".
The boot-lickers and balls-carriers can say "Good riddance" for all they want, but such feeling is actually mutual.
Dear Arthur Lee Lucky,
ReplyDeleteSayonara and good luck to you...may your children grow up not to be slaves of the White People and be second class (or worst) citizens of the developed world.
From the Grass that always seem greener on the other side
My children or future generations can aspire to become The President, as has been demonstrated by President Obama of the US of A, even if they are perceived as 2nd or 3rd or No Class citizens.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, they are already studying in top ivy league schools under the respective countries' scholarships with no bonds to sign and no strings attached at all.
The grass in the garden of the bungalow house, with swimming pool, within 20 acres of freehold land, that I have bought for my children 30 years ago for only S$20,000, is really and truly much GREENER and FRESH but not Sanforized! So, please don't be a sour grape.
Only those who have the guts to venture dare to venture out and experience both the obstacles, difficulties, fun and joy of the Born Free World.
Those who have no choice or those who pander to their comfort zone to continue stay in the well, contained inside a pool of slowly boiling water, will only be boiled to death without knowing what the hell has happened to them until it is too late.
That is the effect of continuous propaganda and indoctrination via various direct and indirect means, both coarse and subtle, over a long period of 40 plus years.
Good luck to you who continue to seemingly turning greener by the day.
Arthur 'talkcock' Lucky
ReplyDeleteYour happy ending sounds too good to be true...and even if were, Redbean and a lot of others could and would hv gone there a loooong time ago...! I really think you're talking cock....! LOL!
BTW, your 20 acres in the desert, is it? Hahaha.....! For crying out loud, at least bluff with some credible numbers and facts, lah!
The USA land of talkcock kings and queens really deserves you too.
One of the reasons I am hoping for a global collapse in the commercial property sector is to see this giant die... or at least get severely wounded.
ReplyDeleteThey are another way the sg.gov "get's into" the real estate market, and this company is huge. All these share transfers and "murders and executions" amongst DBS Land, Pidemco with Temasek hanging around in the picture -- fuck them all lah. This is big time, big bucks fascism... with global connections and "ownership" of real estate all done Lee-family style.
Die, Motherfucker, Die!
hi Arthur Lee Lucky, Confused and Conned. 30 years ago someone told me about Montana and $20k for land the size of angmokio. the big countries are blessed with big land. here we have to make to with smaller and smaller flats. one day i will be hiding inside a shoebox.
ReplyDeletethat's what life has prepared for the ordinary people in paradise.
wish you well.
I climbed from a poor family, that could not even afford to let me go to our local NUS, to eventually do grad studies at top private universities in the US on my own steam.
ReplyDeleteDuring the 10-years climb, I ended up working for cheapskates who asked me to clear rubbish bins and serve tea while also doing regular primary jobs.
I gave up the Princeton dream, the U of Chicago dream (where I had saved my pocket money for the admissions procedures and initially got the place).
It was really difficult for me to see my childhood friends from more privileged backgrounds went to those schools while I had done as well or better than most of them inside and outside the classroom.
And since I did not really like the prestigious government scholarship that I was shortlisted for, naive little me felt like I did not have any other options as an 18 year old.
Looking back, I think it was only lack of knowledge and guts which was holding me back.
With the advent of the Internet, I found out a lot more, and a few years ago, I flew to the US with 2 suitcases and went on to regain admission and finished my studies at other Ivy Leagues.
Here is the link where you can find "free money" to further your education without strings attached.
http://acfsk.com/2007/03/26/free-money-for-singaporeans-to-study-overseas/
sbdy also told me u u can get head start by buying part of the moon today for basement price. this promised land has absolutely no
ReplyDeletestress at all and u can buy as many acres and build as many bungalows with whatever trimmings u need. the elections are totally free and u can hv all the freedom of speech u need. a chinese can even be president here, swear to u. u also get to own bountiful untapped resources on ya land that can last infinity & beyond.
pssst...eh, redbean, dun say i never tell u...buy estate in the moon now....but hush hush ok....shh...
arthur, u still here? go get some too, man...cash in some cap gain from ya land in usa and buy the moon also. (redbean say ya usa land possibly in montana, i say vegas where money printed on trees or is it cactus...sorry, a bit of digression here...)
30 yrs later, u & redebean can hv moonshine together in moonbase alpha & continue to fuck s'pore for its miserable being & existence to full unbridled extent. no censorship whatsoever.
hey, redbean, if u dun buy, at least promise me u'll tell sbdy of this wonderful opportunity that u
bypassed 30 yrs ago, ok?
Arthur Lee Lucky, good for you. Many Singaporeans would give their right arm to have what you have acheived. Singaporeans love to moan and bitch about their plights and lack of freedom, but few would dare step out and walk the talk. Singaporeans are noted for lack of guts and when it comes to bitching about shortcomings they rank top, but, when it comes to standing up to publicly voice dissent and complain, they hope someone else would do the dirty work. Kiasu-ness is a very Singaporean thing. This no one can deny. They are always jealous of others' successes. Instead of feeling happy for others' good fortune they almost always try hard to pour cold water and scorn. I think this is just to justify their own lack of courage and insecurerity.
ReplyDeleteSo, Arthr Lee Lucky, my sincere congratulation to you and your family for your good fortune and admiration for your courage to leave this little dot and be labelled "quitters". THis is from an outside observer.
that guy who cannot get any other bond-free scholarship other than a govt one must be damn stupid. he never heard or try ocbc (and many more non-govt linked ones in sgp.) i also confused whether he talking abt grad school or basic degree. also, he seems to like working for cheapskates for 10 yrs. if i were him, i quit & look for better jobs long long time ago. no wonder he has to struggle! better to go fly kite instead...
ReplyDeletethen this other arthur fella..i think he ex-s'porean, maybe also ex-con. his name sometimes also called confused, which also confuse me. i think he hint he migrated to usA 30 yrs before but still live in 30 yr old hdb flat (see Redbean's other blog - another bee tang story). if i migrate 30 yrs ago, why wuld i fuck-care abt this small stupid island today? nuthing else better to do in usA, meh, other than continue to complain, complain abt S'pore...for 30 yrs? If me, not time...to many single whute females to biao...! Lia Bo Kiu (catch no balls)!
on other hand, if he actually migrated, then he's actually gloating over s'poreans like redbean (and other annoymous - dunno whether s'poreans or not). funny thing redbean & others enjoy being fucked and still wish him good luck. even called gutless for not making choice to join him. for wat? he oready tio bay puo right? it's redbean & others who really needs luck.
wurse...there are many s'poreans who cannot tell fact from fiction or ficton from facts.
wa lau..redbean..u damn good...u right abt few stupid singaporeans...!
Read this and weep. Source: South China Morning Post Sun 15 Nov 09.
ReplyDeleteI'm a Hongkonger - get me out of here
November 15, 2009
Daniel Sin
Hong Kong, Iraq and Sri Lanka wouldn't appear to have much in common. Ethnic conflict, suicide bombings and rampant corruption are not the city's hallmarks.
But if an international poll is to be believed, the citizens of all three share the same desire to get the hell out and find somewhere more liveable. And the survey is comprehensive: US consultancy Gallup surveyed 260,000 adults in 135 countries.
Gallop compiled the results to produce a potential net migration index, which shows the difference between the number of people who would like to leave a country - or, in the case of Hong Kong and some others, a city - and the number who would love to move there. A country's score is recorded as a percentage of its total adult population.
With a score of MINUS 15 per cent, Hong Kong ranks 65th, on a par with Mexico, Iraq and Sri Lanka. Since people can hardly be queuing to migrate to any of those countries for a new life, they owe their scores to the number of citizens rushing for the exits. And so it is with Hong Kong, if Gallup is right: a million more people, a seventh of the population, want to leave the city than move to it.
Perhaps more galling to Hong Kong boosters, Singapore topped the charts with a score of PLUS 260 per cent.
The second most ATTRACTIVE country was Saudi Arabia (perhaps explained by the fact polling in the Gulf states was confined to resident and expatriate Arabs), followed, less surprisingly, by New Zealand, Canada and Australia. Mainland China came in 41st, on minus five per cent.
Immigration consultant Benny Cheung Kai-hei said his firm handled more applications from Hongkongers wanting to migrate than from people wanting to come to the city.
He said many Hongkongers were on the lookout for a better environment for their children, as they found the city's welfare and education systems unfavourable. It is also overpopulated, with heavy traffic congestion and serious air pollution,said Cheung, director of Goldmax International.
Immigration consultant Richard Aziz Butt said the government was not doing enough to attract expatriates to settle in Hong Kong.
Butt said the Capital Investment Entrant Scheme, which requires an entrant to invest HK$6.5 million in property or stocks, was not applicable to potential migrants who just wanted to come to set up a small business.
Many clients told him that people in Hong Kong made too many complaints, he said. They protest over very small matters - even lawmakers are quarrelling with each other - and racial discrimination is widespread.
Butt said many members of ethnic minorities were leaving the city; he says he has helped about 300 families move elsewhere in the past couple of years.
Eddie Kwan King-hung, of EK Immigration Consultant Ltd, is a bit more sceptical.
The survey might have overlooked the fact there is a quota of 150 mainland Chinese who are allowed to move to Hong Kong [each day],Kwan said.
He said the city was a popular destination for many mainland Chinese, who applied to become Hong Kong residents through the Quality Migrant Admission Scheme and the capital investment entrant scheme.
Compare this to the number of Hong Kong people migrating overseas, which has dropped to less than 11,000 a year from the peak of 90,000 in the 1990s,Kwan said.
In Causeway Bay yesterday, born-and-bred Hongkonger Mr Pang said he had absolutely no intention of leaving the city because his lifestyle was better in Hong Kong, with its reasonable prices.
Besides, he said, he didn't have the money to move elsewhere, given that many countries required considerable wealth to achieve the same lifestyle as he enjoys now.
Robert Raufer, a visitor from the US, said if he were to move to Hong Kong, he would consider factors such as air quality, lifestyle and health issues.
Hong Kong should do more about air pollution,he said.
To re-define what is a good life, some food for thoughts:
ReplyDeleteOne cannot decide how long one will live, but one can try to live one's life to the fullest.
One cannot change one's look, but one can smile to make oneself look approachable.
One cannot control others, but one can surely control how one reacts to a situation.
One cannot change the weather, but one can surely change one's mood.
One cannot predict what will happen tomorrow, but one can make full use of today.
One may not have a smooth journey in life, but one can put in one's very best.
hi Kite, welcome to the blog. many singaporeans have made it good here, some easier and some more difficult. on the whole opportunities are there if one tries. and when one makes it, it is important to share with those that don't or give those that are struggling a helping hand.
ReplyDeletewhat's the point of talent and wealth if the heart is missing?
i just want to warn bloggers here that directless rubber is lurking in the dark, taking different forms and trying to change his style of writings. he is very careful not to write carelessly and thoughtlessly. but his prints are there. a mad man will always be a madman.
ReplyDeleteplease do not be disturbed by him. he is just digging himself deeper with every post he made here. he will attack anyone just to stir shit here. i know his agenda. he tried many times to agitate me to write strong anti establishment stuff. he has very extreme views about things, about the establishment. his thinking is very similar to Muslims Against Sharia....
Hey redbean, I write anti-establishment stuff all the time. Are you going to take a shot at me too?
ReplyDeletePlus my nick: Matilah_Singapura... people cannot be blamed for concluding that I am cursing their country to death.
So how? Are you going to warn bloggers about me too? Please, or else I might think that you're playing favourites by targeting directless rubber instaed of me ;-)
"directless rubber"... sounds like someone put on a condom and then didn't know what to do next :) Perhaps his dad should have worn a condom... I'm just thinking. Nothing serious. (It never is)
matilah, the difference between you and this directless rubber is that you stand by what you post and not hide under a series of nicks. people must be confident to speak against anything and owns up.
ReplyDeletei too made many cynical and critical comments and everyone knows that it is me. no need to hide under all kinds of nicks.
that is the difference between a man and a sneaky rubber.
oh, i will still respect any blogger who uses a nick and be identified by that nick and not to hide under several nicks, and be silly enough to act like an elephant hiding behind a coconut tree.
The internet is a great "equalizer". Even the dumbest person can log in and post rubbish or act the fool.
ReplyDeleteShort of blocking the originating IP or deleting the posts, there's no stopping that.
Dear Mr Redbean,
ReplyDeleteI also write anti-establishment and anti-ruling party stuff most of the time. Does that mean that I have to stop that and from now on I have to become a hypocrite and write only pro-establishment stuff and nice things, music to the ears only?
And if using a nick is such a big problem, then should I stop using my nick and simply submit as "Anonymous"?
This is your blog. It is all up to you. You can even tell all of us to just "fxxk off" if you want to.
Green Peas, I think Redbean has explained this quite well. You are Green Peas and that is good enough for Redbean. It is directless rubber that he was referring to. Sneaking around under different nicks. Sneaky bastard.
ReplyDeletehi Green Peas. you have always been an honoured guest in my blogs. in fact everyone visiting here and posting here is my honoured guest, including matilah of course.
ReplyDeletei have always been very happy to welcome everyone here. but since the appearance of directless rubber and a few insurgents, i have to make a few unkind statements to these asses, know their agenda. as a host i will avoid being rude to them but they are taking advantage of my generosity to scold and attack me at every instance and knowing that i will not respond with the same kind of vulgarities and vicious remarks
but i am only human and sometimes, when dealing with the devils, i need to speak their lingo. nice words and decorum are meant for nice people. the devils and asses will never appreciate them anyway.
Green Peas, you are always welcome here and so are all my visitors and bloggers.
cheers everyone.
嘿，很不错的博客！男子..美丽..惊人的..我将书签您的博客，并采取饲料也...
ReplyDeleteFake motherfucker using Google auto translate.
ReplyDelete