Trump – North Korea showing disrespect to China?

This was what Trump said about the recent spate of North Korean missile tests. So, is Trump trying his boyish trick of driving a wedge between China and North Korea? What is so wrong or so provocative of the North Korean testing their own weapons to defend themselves against the constant provocations by the Americans, the biggest bully in the world? Who is threatening or provoking who? Is testing missiles provoking or threatening or conducting wargames at a country’s border simulating an invasion more threatening or provocating?

With only a first strike capability, the war mongers spreading fake news are claiming that North Korea is going to strike the USA with its few pieces of nuclear weapons. The Chinese and Russians also have first strike capability against the US and likewise the US against the Russians and China. But all three parties would not risk a first strike knowing that all have the capability of a second strike when hit. The deterrent is the second strike that keeps these nuclear powers from hitting at each other. North Korea does not have a second strike capability and only fools would try to demonise them to strike the US first. But these fools are making fools of everyone else by telling them that this is real when it is all American propaganda, fake news, misinformation.

Never mind, what is this disrespect shown to China that Trump was trying to say? What truth is there to say that the North Korean testing of missiles is showing disrespect to China? Or were the North Koreans showing disrespect to the Americans? Could it be that they already got approval from China to conduct the test to tell the Americans what can you do about it? Want to start a war because of the testing?

What about sailing warships in the South China Sea, a few thousand miles away from the American shores and sailing to within the 12 nautical mile territorial limits of China? Is this kind of act hostile, showing disrespect to China? What would China consider to be more disrespectful, testing missiles or Americans sailing warships under the guise of freedom of navigation into Chinese territorial waters?

Trump, I am asking you. Are you not showing disrespect to China while you are uttering the same thing about North Korea? Hope China would lay a few mines in the sea surrounding their islands and tell the Americans, you come in at your own risk. Then we will know who is not showing respect to who. The big bad wolf is every where provoking and inciting war.

I am quite sure Chinese leaders are smiling every time Kim Jong Un fires his missiles and the Americans and Japanese start to just up and down furiously.

PS. It would be interesting when the North Koreans also develop anti aircraft carrier missiles that would put a serious threat to American aircraft carriers entering the region. The concept would equally apply and be as effective to the North Koreans as to the Chinese to deny American aircraft carrier access to the surrounding seas.

And this would be good in complementing what China is doing, to have more of such missiles aimed at the American carriers, not forgetting that they could be just as accurate against American and Japanese military bases.

Slap stick comedy accused of being racist

A Singaporean Indian actor was disgusted over his role as an Indian NSman in Jack Neo’s ‘Ah Boys to Men 4’ comedy. He was told by the director that he was not Indian enough, without the Indian accent that the director wanted in the comedy production.

This is from a post in the statestimes.

‘A Singaporean Indian actor was told by the casting director of a new conscription-themed movie by Jack Neo, that he is “not Indian enough”. Actor Shrey Bhargava took to Facebook and said that he put up with the director’s request and felt “disgusted” playing the role of an Indian Singaporean with thick Indian accent. The actor wrote his thoughts about why the state propaganda movie emphasize the need to play on racism to create jokes, and questioned the morality of the Chinese Singaporean majority who find these jokes funny.’

Jack Neo’s comedy is what it is, catering to the masses with the kind of stereo typing not just for Singapore Indians, but for Singapore Chinese, the Chinese educated and the bananas speaking in a contrived English accent that most Singaporeans don’t speak that way. To the little group of baba English educated Chinese, mostly bananas, that is the correct way to speak baba English, oops, that is Queen’s English to them.

In this particular case, the director could not understand that time has changed and the Singapore Indians no longer speak with the Indian accent of olden days or like the Indian Indians that arrived here recently. The 50 years of social integration and growing up together has evolved a generation of new Singaporeans that speak in a common accent, be they Chinese, Indian or Malay. They have a similar accent, very Singaporean and only Singaporeans can undertand and identify with.

The director of the comedy is still stuck in the past, playing on the queer accent and mannerism of the various races as humour. Suck slap stick humour has its own audience and attractiveness, maybe just to churn up the ticket sales but may, like in this case, becomes unpalatable and even be seen as being racist.

Jack Neo and his team should change with the time and reflect the real or new Singaporean mix, the new Singaporean young are different from their parents and grand parents. They have all acquired the Singaporean accent. The new Singaporeans are a new breed from our rojak society. Maybe the director may want to cast the new citizens with their queer accent from their motherland and how they cope with being the minority among the Singaporeans in NS.

There is definitely a distinct difference between the new citizens and the original Singaporeans, Singaporeans born and bred in our multi racial society. When the new citizens open their mouth, it tells instantly. This could be the next theme of Jack Neo in ‘Ah Boys to Men 5’. But beware of being accused of racism as playing up on the new and strange accent, behaviour and mannerism may not go down well on those who are more sensitive than the norm, especially the new citizens who have this obsession that Singaporeans are racist. Do not give room or reason to be accused of racism even if it is a comedy for commercial interests.

Ooi Jin Teck as CEO of Singapore Sports Hub?

Lee Bee Wah is rooting for Jin Teck, the current COO and now acting CEO with the resignation of Sawhney to be the next CEO. Jin Teck has all the credentials to helm this position, a Singaporean, an Olympian, represented Singapore in swimming and won many medals for the country. Why not?

When you read the names of the who’s who in the Sports Hub and those who have left, resigned after Sawhney became the CEO, one would be wondering why all the top management posts were held by foreigners and Jin Teck is probably the odd Singaporean man out? Don’t we have any Singaporeans good enough to be CEOs, or are we waiting to groom the next generation of CEOs in sports so that they would be ready to become CEOs in 50 years time?

I think Jin Teik’s weakest point is that he is a Singaporean, Singaporean is read as stupid, no talent and not good enough. If Jin Teik is a foreigner, his chances of being the next CEO would be much higher.

Would the Sports Hub be asking a foreign recruitment agency to go around the world to hunt for another foreign trash to be the CEO of the Sports Hub and Jin Teik, being a daft no talent Singaporean, is only a seat warmer, waiting to be replaced?

I know where they should be looking for another talented foreigner to be the CEO of the Sports Hub. Go to the little villages in the third world countries. They have all the talents that Singapore needs to run sports hubs and sophisticated modern businesses with skills honed from their little villages. Singaporeans like Jin Teik are just not good enough to be CEOs though they lived in a modern first world city. They just did not have the exposure needed to run modern facilities compare to the villagers.

What do you think?

Milk powder – Remember, you want quality, you pay

This mantra of everything must be expensive and priced accordingly is
probably the biggest culprit in the milk powder controversy. Actually it is
wrong to call it a controversy. The prices of milk powder, especially the
branded ones, have reached the roof and priced like the Mercedes and Rolls
Royce, like luxury items, to be worn on the sleeve.


How could rich parents not give their children the best, the most expensive
brand of milk powder with some even claiming to make the child more
intelligent? With only one child, many parents would give everything they
have to the precious child. Even the not so rich would be hard pressed to
want to give their children the best formula milk to compete with the
children of the elite. And so goes the merry go round and branded formula
milk keep raising their prices to be better by being the most expensive
brand.


And how to tell the mothers that the most expensive brand may not be the
best milk powder for their children? Is milk powder just milk powder
regardless of brand? How to convince the mothers that cheap is also good
when they have always been saying, you want good stuff, quality stuff, pay for
it?


Maybe the govt must start to sing another song, price does not matter and
price is not equated to quality. But what about the high prices of
education, of medical services, of expensive goods and services, are they
really good or no good? All politicians are politicians, sama sama, $200k
or $3m also politician.


Milk powder is just milk powder? How to tell the mothers to go for the
cheapest brand, the house brands of some super market chain? They are
equally good. This really needs a lot of convincing to do to tell the
people that cheap is good, that cheap can also be good quality.


During my time, many of my generation’s babies grew up on condensed
milk like Blue Cross, Mermaid, General brand, if I could recall. What milk
powder, branded ones some more, never heard of. Then again, maybe that was
the reason why they are so daft today and unable to see shitty situation
they are in. If that is so, there is more urgency and need for branded milk
powder to make the next generation cleverer and able to think a bit better
than their unthinking parents.


What do you think, higher price, higher fees better or not?


This milk powder crisis is another unbelieveable story that went unheard,
unnoticed while the price of milk powder shot through the roof. Perhaps
everyone was thinking, you must pay for quality what. Obviously this has
reached a beh tahan point and there is political anger to demand the
situation be righted before it becomes another dangerous asset enhancement
thing when at the end everything becomes nothing.

Singapore China relations – Damage control mode

The last few weeks Singapore leaders have been gloating about the good relations between China and Singapore, going back to the days of LKY and claiming all the credits for Suzhou, Tianjin eco city and telling China that we are old friends, honest and reliable, we have common interests, that our good relations have deep roots and small differences should not derail this relationship.

All the negative reports and articles about China have disappeared to a trinkle, though still one or two appearing to irritate the Chinese. There was no need for such pleadings to remind the Chinese that we used to be good friends if only our diplomacy was based on more sensible approach, knowing our place instead of being khongcum and everyday wanting to punch above our weight, to poke China in the eyes. Oops, no we did not do that, according to Tommy Koh and several other highly talented Singaporean diplomats. Even Vivian has been saying all the nice things about how honest we are in our dealings with China and the South China Sea dispute. No, we never do anything bad or harmful against China. And the Chinese are so stupid, thinking Singapore was anti China!

See, relationship with China is now on even keel, back to normal. Everyone is smiling now. Forget about the Terrex incident or the non invite to OBOR. These are normal things and would soon be blown over.

Let’s see how long we can keep the media and the politicians and diplomat’s mouths shut. Let’s see how long Singapore can restrain itself from wanting to punch above its weight and wanting to poke China in the eyes. In diplomacy, they don’t invent such words called diplomatic for nothing, everything is about being diplomatic and not about punching above one’s weight when there is no need to.

Did Singapore learn anything from the hot headed cocky approach prior to this damage control exercise with China?  George Yeo better tell his former colleagues to know their places and stop being ‘boh tua boh suay’ in the international arena. The rule of the game is different, oops, in a way the same as domestic politics except that the person holding the big stick is not Singapore, so be prepared to be clobbered if one steps out of line

The horse has bolted from the barn, is it a bit too late to close the gate? Oops, more military exercises in the South China Sea, this time anti submarine exercise with India. 

Is this a friendly or unfriendly act against China? Why not anti submarine exercise with China’s navy in the Indian Ocean?

Lim Tean – NSP Secretary General quits in less than 2 years

When Lim Tean came on as NSP’s secretary general, there were many questions asked by those in the known, who was Lim Tean, where was he coming from. The story behind NSP’s changing of Sec Gen is like changing clothing daily and would Lim Tean be different? Many thought, well, another one of those things. I will be more surprised if Lim Tean last longer than 2 years. If he does, I will close my book on him.

After appearing in the last GE, Lim Tean came through as a very promising opposition leader, articulate, confident and spoke sense. He did not come across as another of those things, you know what I mean. Many regarded him as a good catch by NSP or any political party. I see him very likely to be a white swan in a pond of black swans. My question is whether he is just another black swan or a genuine white swan.

Lim Tean’s sin was to speak out on major issues like the EP and the 30% water fee hike, things that respectable politicians should be talking about. Any politician that shunned such topics should join the ruling party, keep their mouths shut and happily collecting the MP allowance of neary $200k per annum.  Lim Tean went one step further, to speak at the Speaker’s Corner on the same sensitive and taboo subjects. Many must be shocked of what Lim Tean did.  I too and knew that his days were numbered if he is a white swan.

Now the white swan has found that black swans are not comfortable with white swans and either he behaves like black swans or leave to find company with other white swans.

Any decent opposition party wants to open their arms to this man Lim Tean? It takes a lot of guts and bravado to welcome someone that has very good leadership potential into their wings. Lim Tean is one of the better politicians thrown out by this stale, staid and barren political landscape.  Who is going to offer him an olive branch and throw him a welcoming party? Any big man out there to take this man of substance to fight another day or thinking that Lim Tean is too good for him and would threaten his own position as leader of a political party?

This is the umpteen times that the people are expecting the alternative political parties to get their act together, put aside personal ego and ambition, to bring together the few good men and women to put up a reasonable team to challenge the ruling party. Or would they continue to muck around thinking that they have all the time in the world to stay as has been minnow political parties that would stage a pretentious fight in every GE only to prove beyond any doubt that they are perpetual losers, meaningless and a waste of the people’s time?

Would the losers acknowledge that they are losers from the start and change tact, to build up a stronger team to make a meaningful fight in the next GE or everything will be as before, a lot of noise but no substance and the electorate increasingly giving up on them?

When war comes home

The blast at Ariana Grande’s Concert, the 22 dead and many wounded, were a grim reminder of how painful and destructive war is to the victims. The victors, those doing the killings, went home smiling and honoured, knighted as heroes for killing other people. The faces of victims, children and woman folks often draw sympathetic emotions from the readers. Yes, the horrors of war must have hurt many innocents, and now 22 dead and 59 wounded and suffering in pains.

The Europeans have been conducting wars of terrors, called conquest, colonization, occupation in other people’s land all over the world, from the Americas to Asia and Africa, for more than 5 centuries. How many innocents and children had they killed and maimed? Must be hundreds of millions! Even the invasion of Iraq, Libya and Syria in recent years, in each of these countries several hundreds of thousands were killed and maimed. Did the heroes of these invading countries, ie USA and UK and Nato countries care a dime about these deaths and incapacitated victims? Surely there were more than 22 babies and mothers and innocents killed by these bastard invaders. No, they went home to celebrate their bombings and killings with their citizens, telling their gruesome war stories like bedtime fairy tales.

The Europeans and Americans have been invading and conquering other countries, starting wars everywhere and everyday like having fun. Now the war is coming home. Little by little, more Americans, British and Europeans are going to feel the pain and horrors of wars at home that their victims felt over more than 5 centuries of European brutality. Would they then understand how the victims of their wars felt, how they suffered, how their lives and countries were ruined?

I don’t think so. When the victims are the Asians and Africans, it is ok. But not when the victims are Americans or Europeans. Their lives are more valuable than the Asians and Africans.

The Americans and Europeans better braced themselves up for war is coming home to roost, maybe just next door down the street. They used to go conquering the world. The world is coming to the US, UK and Europe, to conquer them in their homeland. The tide is changing. With so many former colony people emigrating into Europe and the USA, all victims of colonization and conquest, what could the Americans and Europeans expect from them, serving them tea and breakfast?

   

When the clowns are asleep, jobs got stolen

Click to enlarge and count the number of staff in the picture and ask, are they Singaporeans? Point of clarification - A Kah Fong emailed to inform me that the above picture is Sawhney's office with ESPN in India, not in the Sports Hub. In the TRE article, copied under PS, it was stated that he came to Singapore and joined ESPN. Something not clear here, was he in ESPN in India or in Singapore?

Manu Sawhney became the new Sports Hub CEO in Oct 2015.
 
In an interview about couple of months into the job, he told the media, “As a proud Singaporean, I thought it was a great opportunity for me to play my part in building sports. And using this facility … how do we help put Singapore on the global sporting destination map.”
And now, about 1.5 year later, it was reported yesterday (20 May) that he was forced to take an “extended personal leave” following an anonymous letter of complaint against him.

Since Sawhney’s appointment, many senior management and staff have left Sports Hub, including its legal, marketing, corporate communication and HR heads. The media reported in Aug last year that the staff at Sports Hub were having “low morale” caused by the lack of communication, and actions by the company’s leadership….
“Since then, there has been very little communication by the leadership. There have been a lot of closed-door decisions, and we have not heard from the CEO regarding his vision and direction for the Sports Hub since he came on board,” a source told the media.

Another said, “A lot of new staff, including senior management, have been hired over the last several months but no one tells us who they are, or what they will be doing. They show up all of a sudden.”
“As a result, people get affected. They start wondering whether the new staff are here to eventually replace them,” the person added.

The above is from an editorial piece posted in the TRE titled, ‘Sports Hub CEO: A proud S’porean who didn’t serve NS’. And here is a photo of his office and staff. Look very carefully, are the staff Singaporeans? If you need to, expand the photo to get a better picture. Very likely they are Singaporeans, new citizens, or PRs or employment pass holders.

Notice anything amissed in the picture? I would find this office normal if it is taken in New Delhi or Mumbai, but not the Singapore Sports Hub. Maybe the picture is actually taken in New Delhi or Mumbai to create a wrong impression that it is taken from the Singapore Sports Hub. The more I look at the picture the more I don’t believe that it was taken in Singapore, NOT my Singapore, NOT in a govt office. This picture has drawn many criticisms in the TRE for being very unSingapore. Many would not think the staff is of Singaporean mix or reflective of Singapore’s demography. I cannot believe that Singaporeans could not fill these jobs or did not qualify for these jobs, or did not want to work in these jobs and you need to fill them with foreigners.(This comment would be unnecessary and inappropriate if the staff in the said office were in India and the info posted in the TRE article will be fake news or inaccurate news. Got to be careful of fake news or misinformation).

This is how sick and bad this country has become to Singaporeans if this picture is real. OK, this as a general comment is still not out of sync from many comments all over the places. We have lost not only our jobs to foreigners but our country as well. Please do not blame anyone of them in the picture. They are innocent, just people like you and me that want to work, to get a job.

Who do you think should be blamed for this sickening state of affair when Singaporeans could not find decent jobs, (those in the pictures are decent jobs and the CEO’s job would be highly desired by Singaporeans), while pathetic Singaporeans ended up unemployed, unemployable or underemployed.
Which clowns allowed this to happen? Who has/have betrayed the Singaporeans?

With khongcum people in charge this is what is happening to your country. Some said not khongcum but sorchai in charge. Did anyone shout betrayed?

PS.
Sawhney was formerly an Indian national. According to his LinkedIn information, he studied at Birla Institute of Technology and Science for his first degree in Mechanical Engineering before going to Indian Institute of Foreign Trade for his MBA.

He started his career in ITC Global Holdings involving in commodity trading. Some time in the mid-2000s, he came to Singapore and joined ESPN STAR Sports, a broadcast media. He later became a PR and a new citizen.

Why is this chap not a mismatch for the CEO job in the Sports Hub?

Elected President – Another constitutional challenge

M Ravi has lodged his challenge to the High Court on the EP issue on the ground that it is unconstitutional. His premise is that the reservation of the EP for a candidate based on race is unconstitutional. Holy shit, how come no one knows that this is racist and is unconstitutional, that our constitution is happy and open to have race imbedded and enshrined in it as a holy part of the constitution? And no one could see anything wrong with this and only M Ravi could! Or is it that M Ravi is not normal thus can see the not normal thing or the rest of the people who did not see anything unconstitutional about it are abnormal or simply daft? Even the whole legal fraternity could not see anything wrong with this amendment to the constitution! Is this normal or abnormal?

Ravi said that the changes to the constitution are racial discrimination, positive or negative racial discrimination is discrimination. Period.

Cheng Bock’s challenge is more technical in nature, about how to count correctly. This is another uniquely Singapore thing. Unable to count despite our great teaching methodology in arithmetics for the school children is no laughing matter. It is a national trait. Perhaps the govt should consult the primary school kids on how to count and the proper and correct way to count. Oops, it is the AGC office that did the counting. I don’t have much confidence in the ability of lawyers in counting. They can talk a dead person to life but counting 1,2 and 3 seems to be a big challenge to them.

Ok, is there anything else that is unconstitutional and would there be another mad lawyer, oops, I mean abnormal lawyer to stand up and say it is unconstitutional and must be challenged?

How about the unequal rights given to some people that are supposed to be more equal because they are richer, run big companies and all the craps that have no real relevance or relationship to the dignity and integrity of the office of the Presidency? Should not everyone be equal under the constitution and no one should be allowed to claim himself to be more equal than others just because he got a few dollars more than others?

The regulation to exclude 99% or more of the population because of some ridiculous criteria based on money and position in society is foul, smelly like shit. How can the constitution allow this to be included and no one cries foul? The criteria are saying that the citizens are not equal under the constitution. How can?

No legal mad man thinks this is mad? Maybe this is the reason. All the legal men and women are not mad to think this is mad and unconstitutional. So it must be constitutional. All men are equal but some are more equal than others. And this is a core principle in the Constitution of Singapore. Four legs are good, two legs are better, or is it my aristocratic background makes me different and of better breed than the hoi polloi, so I can be a President and the cheap masses cannot?

 

 

Fake news or real news?

We have often heard of Singaporeans being beaten by foreigners and with the foreigners often walking away with a light tap on the wrists. Singaporean cyclists and motorists and the infamous taxi drivers, used to be PMETs bore the brunt of physical attacks by these foreign beasts, aka foreign talents. Singaporeans seem to take such bollocking by foreigners as part and parcel of being Singaporeans.
 
Now this bashing of Singaporeans has gone one notch higher, the bashing of Singaporean police officers, or was it fake news? I read this posted in the statestimes review and dunno want to laugh or want to cry for the police officers that were beaten, that is, if the news is real.
 
‘Singapore Police is now under intense public criticisms for incompetence over letting off an Australian public menace 4 times with no detention, including multiple assaults and insults against enforcement officers.
 
At the Departure Hall in Changi Airport Terminal 2 on 12.15am of April 20, Jason Peter Darragh, 44, assaulted police officers – hitting one in the face and pushing another to the ground – and hurled abuses loudly at the enforcement officers. The ruckus was captured by a video and went viral on Facebook. Jason Darragh was later seen in the video being put down and arrested.
 
Interestingly, Jason Darragh was released from detention less than a day later – presumably to have posted bail and less than 24 hours later, at around 4.50am the next day (April 21), Jason Darragh caused a public annoyance in front of McGettigan’s CQ bar in Clarke Quay. The police let the public menace walked free again.
 
Five days later on the 12.20am of April 26, Jason Darragh was found drunk in the toilet at Orchard Towers shopping mall, a local mall known for sleazy bars. He was sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital for unknown reasons and at the hospital, he hurled abuses at a police officer. The police, knowing his previous 3 records, let him walked free again.
 
Another five days later on May 1, Jason Darragh was again drunk and harassed a woman at a taxi stand at Tan Tye Place near Clark Quay. Jason Darragh is now walking free in the Singapore streets on a S$20,000 bail and will only face his first court trial next Friday (May 19).’
 
Assuming the above is real news, if fake I will take it down immediately and the statestimesreview is gonna get whacked for it, is it tolerable or acceptable for our law enforcing officers to be bashed by foreigners at will and taken so lightly? Do we need such foreigners here in the first place even if they are real talents? 

Anyone heard of pride and dignity and self respect?
 
What is going on?

Sabah Masters Athletics 2017 and building bridges

Some pictures taken at the Sabah Masters Athletics Open Competition. The Singapore Masters Association and Singapore Masters Track and Field Association sent a combined contingent of athletics to this friendly annual meet. Top pic, some athletics before departure from Changi. Bottom pic, prize presentation for 100m 65-69 Age Group.

Our team enjoyed participating in this Meet for several years and has made and developed many friends along the way. The athletes from Indonesia, Brunei and India and several others were also there. The hospitality and easy camaraderie between the athletes and also the harmonious racial relationship in Sabah permeate the whole Likas Stadium as well as the Streets of Kota Kinabalu. The prize presentation picture tells a lot about the good people relation in Sabah if you look carefully. This is reminicence of the golden days of colonial era and pre Malaysia days when the various people just live together as one people despite their differences without any trace of enmity. The way the people blend and mix together, play together, are something that is quite different from the superficiality of West Malaysia when harmonious relations is skin deep and artificial, contrived and uncomfortable at best.

Sabah has retained the kind of genuine and unadulterated inter racial harmony that Malaysia and Singapore used to share before politics and the politicising of everything under the sky become the norm and painful thing to bear with today.

Sabah is a good example of living in peaceful coexistence without politics and religion being played up at the whims and fancy of politicians and forcing the people to live under a cloud of fear and suspicion. May the Sabahans continue to live happily together forever.

GIC cuts losses of nearly $10 billion!

Hsien Loong has announced that GIC had cut its long term investment in UBS by 2.4% and taking a hit of $6-$7 billion according to some estimate. Some put this sum to be $8b! GIC is still holding on to 2.7% of its shares in UBS which means a paper loss of more than $7 billion giving a total staggering loss of about $14b!

When such numbers are rolled out, many could not imagine or feel the impact of such losses. They are just numbers. In fact many big fund managers playing with OPM are too immune and desensitized to losing such big money. It is other people’s money after all, no sweat, no responsibility, own pocket not hurt.

How much is $14 billion? The cost of paying our political office holders is reported to be about $53m a year.  Let’s put these numbers into persperctive. $ 14b is $14,000,000,000, 10 zeros behind the 14. $53m is $53,000,000, with 6 zeros behind the 53. The sum of $14b literally can pay the political office holders for 300 years or till 2317!

This is how much we have lost, just on one bank alone. This is not a plate of char kway teow or even several peanuts. This is big money being lost. How much did WP’s town council lost? Or did they actually lose any money at all? Or how much the other town councils lost during the lemon bond crisis?

Take a deep breath and get a feel of the scale of this loss.  We spent $32.b for 4 submarines, or one sub costs less than $1b. We could have 14 subs for free by not investing in UBS.

B&R – Was Hsien Loong invited to attend?

This matter seems to trouble many Singaporeans as such an important international event when many leaders were attending and Hsien Loong was not when Singapore is hoping to hitch a ride on this massive project to pick up a few contracts along the way. And Cynical Investor has said it is confirmed that Hsien Loong was not invited, a slap that would not go unnoticed.

Here is what Cynical Investor posted in his blog.

One Belt One Rd: PM “not invited”
In China on 17/05/2017 at 4:24 am

I was wrong. PM wasn’t invited to the summit meeting on the above, it seems, going by what Lawrence Wong is quoted as saying. He wasn’t aping Western leaders by declining the invitation and sending ka kiah instead.

When asked why Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong did not attend the Belt and Road Forum, which was attended by 29 heads of state and government, including many from South-east Asia, Mr Wong said the invitation was decided by the Chinese.
ST

So reasonable to assume that the Chinese did not invite Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.
This non invite may appear to be a diplomatic snub but taken seriously it could fore tell far more serious implications to Singapore. It is not just a continuation of the Terrex fiasco bundled together with the trumpeting of the TPP and the demand that China abide by the kangaroo court judgement on the South China Sea. There are more to it. Well some jokers still openly denied that Singapore did all these things, that Singapore was innocent, an honest broker. Stupidity has no cure but to make such denials in public only proved how stupid these people can be.

Singapore has officially been saying that it supports the B&R project and wanted to participate actively in its development. Why was Hsien Loong left out, ok this is just a view by Cynical Investor, if Singapore is an important player to the maritime Silk Road?

The message is clear, if Singapore is an important part of the maritime Silk Road, there is more reason to invite Hsien Loong to the forum. And if invited, there is no reason for Hsien Loong not to attend, an event that is definitely more important than having dinner at the White House. The probability that Cynical Investor is right is very high and the negative implications that Singapore is no longer in the good books of China could be a forgone conclusion or at least not a major part in the maritime Silk Road plan. By the way the South China Morning Post even said that China left out Hsien Loong deliberately, so no more guessing.

Malaysia appears to be the main actor in China’s B&R project and quietly accepting its role without any gloating. The amount of investments pouring into Malaysia in infrastructure development says it all.

The non invite is not so important than not being part of the big scheme of things. This does not bode well for Singapore’s ambition to be the regional transportation hub in the future. What would happen if Malaysia were to replace Singapore as the regional hub? What would happen to Tuas’ big expansion plan as the biggest container port in the region when no container ship is arriving?
What do you think?

PS. On second thought, there is really nothing to worry about. Even if Singapore is being left out, with our super talents in charge, Singapore would definitely find a better way out, maybe create its own Singapore Silk Road.  China forgot that Singapore was the master and China the student.

And there is the great USA to rely on. Then there is always the next big thing in Asia, India, the next growth story. Singapore has the first mover advantage and would definitely do very well clinging onto the Indian growth engine. Quick, quick upgrade the CECA so that all the Singaporean firms and Singaporeans can fly to India to work and to do business. But make sure they recognize our degrees and diplomas first.

USA unleashing the devil

For its own strategic interest to remain as the top dog in the world of hegemony and empire, the Americans have unwittingly and willingly unleashed the biggest devil of the past and allowing the devil to rearm to the teeth to do damage once more to civilisation and to the Americans one day. China is seen as the number one enemy of the Americans not that China is going to start a war with the Americans, but by virtue of its size, its population, the energy release from an industrious and educated population, organised as a nation, to be able to surpass the Americans in all fields. The rate the Chinese people are climbing the industrial, scientific and technological ladder, at a blinding speed that it is only a matter of days before China would be number one in everything. This is an undeniable and unstoppable fact, without having to go to war. It is just a natural historical development of human civilisation. And this is seen by the Americans as a threat to their world dominance and must be stopped at all costs.

 

The fear of being number two to China is driving the Americans bonkers. They are doing everything they could, dropping their defensive instinct to protect themselves, by allowing the Japanese to rearm to it former military strength to create another diversion, another area of concern for China. How far would the Americans go to cut the leash on Japan to become another mighty military machine? Have the Americans forgotten what Japan did to the rest of Asia and SE Asia? Have the Americans forgotten Pearl Harbour? Maybe, maybe the Americans think this is history. The Japanese of today, in their businessmen suits, are very nice and respectable gentlemen, very polite people, unlike their barbaric parents. The DNAs have changed.

 

Have the Americans forgotten about the two atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki and the carpet bombing of Tokyo and other Japanese cities? Perhaps, when the Americans are not the victims, they could and would forget. Would the Americans forget 911? Never, because the Americans were attacked and were the victims. This same pattern of thoughts would apply to the Japanese. Would the Japanese forget Pearl Harbour? Never, because that was the biggest military victory of the Japanese against the Americans. Nevermind if it was a sneak attack without warning, without declaration of war. The Americans got themselves to be blamed for sleeping on the job.

 

Would the Japanese forget the bombing of Japan and the two atomic bombs in Hiroshima and Nagasaki? Never. They are holding annual rituals to remember the days when Japan were obliterated by the Americans. They are also remembering their murderous soldiers in the Yasukuni Shrine. They are very proud of these soldiers for their conquest of Asia and their sneak attacks against the Americans.But they would forget their atrocities across Asia and South East Asia.

 

What would these memories mean to the Americans and the Japanese? One day, the debt must be settled. The Americans must pay for the bombing of Tokyo, for dropping two atomic bombs on Hiroshima and Nagasaki, for keeping Japan as a semi colony of the American Empire until today. Yes, the Japanese are still bowing politely to the American warlords. But did the Americans see the glint and hatred in their eyes when their heads are bent, starring at their feet?

 

The Americans and the Japanese have a long history of aggression, rivalry and hate. Pearl Harbour could have its origin when Commodore Perry opened up Japan by force. It could also originate from the American's effort to deny access to natural resources from Japan.

 

The history and relationship between China and the USA were less acrimonious. There was no invasion and war between the two countries. The only war they fought was on opposite sides in the Korean War. And during the WW2, China was on the side of the Americans, and many Americans fought with the Chinese against the Imperialist Japan. The souring of relationship was political, the Cold War and anti Communism. Such wounds are easily healed as they did not drive too deeply into the psyche of the two people. China would not be harbouring vengeful thoughts of retaliating against an American nuclear bombing of Chinese cities. There were none to talk about. Though there were many occasions when the Americans were flirting with the idea of a preemptive nuclear strike against Chinese nuclear bases in Lop Nor, these did not happen.

 

China and the USA were political enemies but no unforgiveable and unbearable acts of aggression between the two countries. Now the Americans are choosing to unleash the devil in Japan in their military strategy for world dominance against China. Is this a wise thing to do? Would the Japanese turn against the Americans one day when the Americans were fighting China and deal another more horrendous attack than Pearl Harbour? The Japanese have all the reasons to do so, for their national pride and their militaristic ambition to be another super power.

 

What Harry Harris had done, by jumping at the slightest opportunity to want to start a war with China in the South China Sea and in the Korean Peninsula are signs of what he and the Japanese have in the back of their minds. The only way for Japan to be the top super power once again is for the destruction of the USA, China and Russia. If Japan could get these three countries to destroy each other, Japan would be number one again by default.

 

While the Americans are obsessed with the rise of China, let they not forget the bigger devil lurking behind, in bed with them. Harry Harris is a dangerous man. But the more dangerous one is Abe. Would the Americans really want to unleash this devil that has an axe to grind against the Americans? Who is the real enemy against the Americans, China or Japan? By virtue of the relative size, America will be number two to China in a matter to time, no need for war. It is a natural process of human civilisation. For Japan to be number one, it has to see to the destruction of China, Russia and the USA. How could Japan achieve this goal? Are the Americans aiding the Japanese to this end game?

Petition to the Govt on the Elected President Election

Here is the link to the petition. https://www.change.org/p/in-support-of-an-open-singapore-presidential-election-2017
Lim Tean, Secretary General of NSP, Tan Kin Lian, Goh Meng Seng and Syafarin Sarif have started this petition to the Govt stating that the next EP election should be in 2023 and not in 2017.  The issue is how the 5 terms were counted, the govt starts counting from Wee Kim Wee but the petition and Tan Cheng Bock’s constitutional challenge disagrees with this, that it should start counting from Ong Teng Cheong as the first Elected President.
500 people have signed the petition and still counting meaning they don’t agree with the govt’s methodology or tracing it further back, they don’t agree with the AG office’s recommendation.

A convincing initiative for regional connectivity and global trade

By Chua Chin Leng | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2017-05-15 14:50

China's One Belt One Road Initiative was conceived in 2013 in its entirety by the strategists and planners in China under the leadership of President Xi Jinping. This extensive infrastructure network of land, rail and sea covers more than 100 countries and an unending budget that cumulatively could be in the region of US$40 trillion to US$80 trillion when in maturation.

In a short span of three years from conception to what it is today, this initiative, now popularly known as B&R, is a new reality that has taken off and gone beyond the imagination of many modern day planners. Sixty-five countries from China through Central Asia to Europe by land and a sea route covering South East and South Asia through the Middle East, linking Africa to Europe to form the southern belt, present a problem that would challenge the wits and wisdom of the ablest politicians and statesmen just to be able to sew the countries into a complete tapestry.

The countries involved in B&R are as diverse in culture, race, religion, political ideology, political rivalry and historical enmity that the thought of convincing them to agree, to be part of the project, must be a nightmare to the ablest in diplomacy. And China has pulled it through, to successfully bring aboard these mixed bags of countries, is not just shrewd diplomacy but also by hard economics of what each country would stand to benefit from it. To be able to win the confidence of the leaders of these countries, that everyone stands to benefit from a win-win partnership, is itself a great achievement for China and Xi Jinping's team of negotiators. The task is more daunting if one is preview to the doomsayers and negative commentaries and mischievous doubts posed by those countries that did not want this project to succeed, let alone to take off in such a short time.

Every single country that voluntarily participates in this international initiative must have convinced themselves and been able to see for themselves the goodness of the project from their own perspective and understanding and interests, not from what the Chinese told them. With all the differences and negative external influence and forces working against this project, some appearing unbridgeable due to historical enmity and political divisiveness, no one, not even Xi Jinping and his team, is able to win them over unless they themselves are willing to come on board.

The B&R is therefore an initiative that all participating members are convinced, must be convinced, that it is beneficial to them in the long run, in trade, communication, economic and political development. The benefits of B&R speak for themselves and are the most important factors in winning the hearts and minds of the participating nations.

For the coastal states or states that have easy access to seaports, the One Belt aspect of the B&R initiative would only enhance and improve their positions in a more interconnected world. B&R is particularly important to the landlocked countries in Central Asia and Eastern Europe, central Russia and the western regions of China. These countries and regions have been disadvantaged by their inability to access the sea trade routes and have lagged behind for centuries in economic development. B&R has transformed the traditional reliance on the sea for transportation and opened up these countries to trade freely using land routes, by rail and by roads, freeing themselves from having to depend on seaports. These countries would now be in the mainstream of international trade, in the main highways of trade, communication and transportation, turning themselves into new centers of economic growth and development. Many of the cities in these landlocked countries would become new rich economic centers, finding their rightful place as the equals of New York, London, Rotterdam, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai in the 21st Century.

There will be realignment of trade routes and transportation hubs as a result of B&R, and many cities would reinvent themselves and transform into new vibrant commercial centers of trade and economic activities. Khazakstan, Malaysia and Greece would become new communication hubs of a new future and the biggest beneficiaries of B&R.

The B&R initiative is a new catalyst, a bright spark that would bring about more global trade and economic development in an otherwise staid and slumbering world economy. Thousands of bilateral and multilateral projects have taken off and many more are in the pipeline. Hundreds of bilateral and multilateral agreements between governments have been signed. B&R is not a China initiative but an international cross-border project that needs the cooperation and active participation of all the countries to be successful.

B&R is what the world needs today. The flow of capital, goods, people and so forth would be a boost to economic activities and vibrancy, to open up new regions of growth, to bring about prosperity and interconnectivity to all the countries in the project and to benefit the world in general. The success of the B&R is not just for China but for all the participating countries and the whole world.

Preparing Singaporeans for the future

We have heard many talks about preparing Singaporeans for the future. What kind of future can the Singaporeans be looking forward to in SG100? There are many signs appearing supported by facts and figures that are saying Singaporeans future may be something they better not look forward to.
One stark reality today is the influx of foreigners to take up good jobs and top jobs in Singapore, not only in MNCs but in GLCs and increasingly in stats boards, and also in ministries. What is this fearful trend telling?

Even today, while Singaporeans are still in charge, foreigners are increasing being recruited to top jobs, as CEOs in preference to Singaporeans. And what comes next? They start to fill up the company and organizations with their countrymen and country women. The prevalence of this practice is widespread and can be seen everywhere.

As time goes by, more and more Singaporeans would be out of jobs while more and more important jobs would be taken over by the foreigners and their countrymen and country women. Soon they will proclaim that Singaporeans did not have the skill sets and experience for these jobs, for senior appointments to be CEOs, to head departments and divisions. Oh they are already saying this and doing it already.

Without being employed, Singaporeans would only become less skill and less experience and therefore less relevant to the jobs. The whole process is as good as desensitizing Singaporeans from the job market, turning them into misfits, mismatch, and lack of relevant skills. Many daft Singaporeans could not see this dreadful trend and happily going about reinventing themselves to be hawkers, taxi drivers and even deliverymen despite their education and experience in the corporate world. They will keep descending into the lowest level of employment, of survival in this very expensive world.

How woudl all these developments affect the future of Singaporeans and the young of today? They will no longer be holding the top jobs for sure, or very few will. Not only that, they would also not be holding middle management jobs and not even low level jobs. Their fate would be the same as the non bumis in Malaysia. They have to go into small businesses, peddling pots and pans, to be self employed as they are no longer employable or no foreigner CEOs would want to hire them in Singapore. Yes, they should all be taxi drivers, security guards and hawkers and dressed impeccably as deliverymen. And of course there is still one big job reserved and protected for them, National Service, to guard and protect this island for the foreigners to rule them after taking over their jobs.

I am afraid this reality is increasingly become more real than fiction and will turn into a nightmare for future Singaporeans. Singaporeans, be prepared for a future when they become the outcast, the dalits of their own country, once called Singapore, once your home. Beware and be prepared for this fate if things did not change and the course of social and economic development continues in this direction. A stop must be put to this destructive trend to save Singaporeans and Singapore from the indiscriminate and irresponsible presence of foreigners to dominate over Singaporeans and to destroy the future of Singaporeans.

We cannot hand our country to the foreigners by default, without a fight. Stop going for more silly training to lower skill jobs. You should be upgrading when you go for training, not downgrading. Why pay and spend precious time to traing to downgrade? What nonsense!

The Singaporeans of the past were all the time trying to upgrade and improve themselves. Why are the Singaporeans of today told to downgrade and be happy with the situation?