We cannot discriminate against foreigners

There is this very interesting article by a Christine Chan in the ST forum today, titled ‘We don’t have the right’. We don’t have the right to do what? She said we don’t have the right to ban foreign workers from the casinos nor can the govt imposed levies for them to enter the casinos like Singaporeans. Doing such things ‘would result in unfair discrimination against foreign workers’. But it is ‘fair and justifiable application of the law’ to impose entrance fees levied against Singaporeans and PRs. KNN, I am now scratching my head sore and the few strands of hair left could be no more. Imposing entrance levies against Singaporeans is fair and against foreign workers is discrimination? Really ah! Where does this Christine Chan coming from? I hope her view is a personal one. Using her logic, I think we cannot ban foreigners from chewing gums. It will be discriminatory too. What else we can’t impose on foreigners? Oh foreigners can smoke anywhere, can litter or break any law right? If in our country we can have laws applied on our citizens and the same laws cannot be applied to foreigners, now what kind of logic is that?

Caught off guard again?

There were no crimes in my ward, or at least until yesterday. The men in blue launched a big operation and netting about 50 gangsters. Now the ministry is talking about studying, reviewing and revamping the criminal laws against teens and gangsters. At least something good comes out from the recent spate of gangsterism. Everyone suddenly found that they have work to do. But it would be better if they were more proactive and nipped the problem in the bud before it exploded in the face. Maybe the word 'proactive' has long been thrown into the longkangs. So, arresting 50 or 60 gangsters is enough? No more gangsters in the street? Low crime doesn't mean no crimes. A little crime is unavoidable and can be lived with? Is there a need to fester out all the vermins once and for all? What about the bigger animals? Just like the loan sharks, we are seeing only the little dogs and cats being caught. The big ones are so elusive and impossible to be caught. Cutting the lallangs without pulling out the roots will only see it grow again.

The unlikely reaction to QE2

Much as the Americans may want to think that the whole world is made up of ignorant fools, and they can keep on printing money on worthless pieces of paper for as much as they like, the Quantitative Easing2 is triggering a reaction from around the world that could lead to a backlash of unimaginable proportion. While MNCs took a whole year to earn a couple of billions, the Fed just printed $600 b for its own use. No need to work or sweat. Step aside hedge funds, loan sharks, pirates, robbers, con men, and bankers. The Fed can make more money and easier than all of you combined. The world is looking at this QE2 in shock and awe. Even Germany, a hardcore ally of the US could not believe it and had come out openly to criticize this move. Unwittingly, the QE2 has aligned the forces of the world against the US, an unpredictable reaction. They are all going to lock out American dollars from their economies, maybe abandoning it. And the consequences of such a world reaction can be deadly for the US. The banana currency is ripening and will soon become thrash. The nightmare is just beginning for the Americans and their evil Empire. Will it disintegrate?

LKY is indispensable to Singapore

On his second appearance after his recent bereavement for his late wife, LKY is in the thick of action again. This time he is calling for the healthcare industry to innovate to reduce cost and improve the quality of healthcare. We can soon expect more innovations in the healthcare industry and probably lowering of cost, a serious problem that no one can solve. And when it does happen, the people have only LKY to thank for. It will be good if he says something about gangsterism and to stop this plague before it gets worst. And the property owners can relax knowing that their property prices can only go up with him around. I am really worried how Singapore will be without him.

The waning of an evil Empire

Three failures marked the Asian tour of Obama and Hilary. They had some success in India with offers of more biz and an UN Security Council seat dangling at the end of the stick. And India was salivating. The Security Council seat is nothing but a red herring as the US knows that China or Russia will definitely veto it. In Indonesia, it was just testing water as the fear of a muslim state is apparent. Other than promises, nothing tangible came out of it. The Indonesians too are conscious of the US intent and are wary of being dragged into the bigger evil scheme precipitating in conflict and disorder. Asean too gave a slap to Hilary by sanctioning the election in Myanmar. And with China taking the same stand as Asean, it became a left and a right slap. It must be very disappointing after painting Myanmar in thick black to see Asean and China saying otherwise. The third defeat was in the APEC Summit when nothing came out in favour of the Americans. Increase protectionism and the attack on Chinese Yuan no longer receive support from other nations. Both were not seen as worthy causes for support. A strong Chinese Yuan would mean higher cost and higher price for Chinese products which the rest of the world, including American citizens will have to pay. And it will do nothing to help unemployment and trade imbalances. The real problem is cheaper labour cost and infrastructure cost in China. When the Chinese workers are prepared to eat less and live simply, and produce more, no amount of currency manipulation can turn that around to favour the US. The US must reexamine itself and its belligerent policies towards other nations. They cannot impose leadership on the rest of the world when it can’t even solve its own domestic problems. And no country will want to be embroiled in warfare at the beck and call of the evil Empire.

Shorten talk time in Parliament

Some people are unhappy with the proposed shortening of talk time for MPs in Parliament. 30 min is considered too long and the new limit is 20 min. Consider the fact that there are 84 MPs and if each takes up 30 min for each issue, then Parliament can go on and on and MPs and ministers will not have time to do their work. Maybe that is the reason why some MPs find it difficult to attend Parliament. Shortening of talk time is good and we may have full attendance when MPs know that the session will be short and sharp. After all, how much time is needed to ask question and read prepared answers? I think the time can be further shortened as time is precious. The Ministers and MPs have many important works to do and too much talking can be wasteful. Shorter talk time will mean that every parliamentarian will have to be precise in what they say. Productivity and efficiency in parliament will definitely go up in all areas.

Doing away with exam results for school admission

I read an article by Kelvin Teo in NewAsiaRepublic blog calling for the doing away with exam results for school admission. He mentioned many good points about how the over emphasis on exam results may not be producing leaders with a heart or caring for the people. And of course all the fears and pressure of examinations. He also cited the doing away of school ranking as a move in the right direction after parental protest that ranking is bad. In the same vein, grading is equally bad. I must say that it is a revolutionary idea and worth thinking about. Let’s do away with all examinations or have examinations without results. Then we can remove all the ills and apprehension of parents and students. And no one can go around bragging about getting straight As and looking down on those who got straight Cs or worst. The parents and children will be most pleased. And we can advance every student to the university as universities too will have no exam results to base on for student admission. And when there are too many students applying for tertiary education, there are many well tested means to award places. Balloting is a good idea, fairly easy to use. A kind of COE, certificate of education, can be introduced and parents can bid for them for admission to tertiary institutions. Or a quota system, based on whatever criteria of race, language or religion, or parental status can be considered. One thing for sure, foreign universities will be out of the picture as they will likely to continue to look at exam results which our students by then would not have. But never mind. Make sure our tertiary institutions are ranked number 1 to 4 in the world ranking and our students need not bother to go overseas for their education. The more I write, the more brilliant this idea appears to be. I think I am now convinced that we don’t need school examinations at all.

The best thing coming out from the SGX/ASX saga

In Singapore, whatever argument that the govt used must be right. The critics may disagree, but so what? If the govt says that it has nothing to do with Temasek or GIC, that becomes the gospel truth. If the govt says that there is no conflict of interest, there is no conflict of interest. If the govt says Temasek and GIC are independent commercial entities, they must be. Questioning the logic is like questioning the integrity of the govt. When Singapore bought into Thailand’s telecom company, the Thais opposed the deal, citing Singapore’s govt involvement. Of course the Singapore govt’s argument was that it was strictly a business deal and had nothing to do with it. The Thais didn’t buy it. Now come the SGX/ASX deal and the same criticism from the foreigners, and the same defense from the Singapore argument. The foreigners are not going to buy our logic or be easily convinced. They are going to tear everything apart and put them under scrutiny. Arguments that are seemingly sound and right to Singaporeans are not going to be so in the eyes of a different foreign party. How so, aren’t the arguments factual and correct? We may have the MM and PM as Chairman and Deputy Chairman of GIC or other senior govt ministers or officials in Temasek or SGX, but these organisations are run independently of the govt. Can’t the foreigners see this and accept this simple truth? The point is that the foreigners are not going to accept this simple logic just because our govt says so. They are not Singaporeans.

40 gangsters arrested in new swoop

The men in blue has swung into action and netted another 40 gangsters following the public outcry for action. Given the right order, they can really do a good job. But 40 is too small a number to cheer about. There could be another 400 or 4000 on the loose. What else can the men in blue do to make sure that their message gets through and those still out of the net know that it is time to behave and not to create more trouble for good? I think the best thing to do is to pull in another few hundred and throw them into an uninhabited island to fend for themselves. And everyday just provide enough food for half of them. After 3 months the survival, if there is any, can then be received for an indefinite stay in the freehold bungalow estate in Changi. The thing is that while the men in blue are working overtime to bring in more of the gangsters, the latter may be planning more strikes to prove that they are indefeatable. We will have to wait and see. If the story of the loan sharks is anything to go by, you can bet that the next series of attacks could be worse.

American trade deficit game is simply brilliant

The American trade deficit with China not only works to its benefit, but is also intentional and planned. An illustration of how this works by using the latest issue of US$600b may help to make the game plan clearer. US$600b can buy a lot of stuff especially from China where the cost of goods is very cheap. Think of what the Americans could buy with that kind of money. All the goods made in China ended in America to be enjoyed by the Americans. The Chinese ended with US$600b of paper notes in exchange. The Chinese could go to America with the same money to buy American products. The American will sell some to them, say US$100b. So China ended up a trade surplus of US$500b. Looks pretty good. But what can China do with this money if it can’t buy things from the Americans? The US$500b becomes money on paper but worthless in real terms. To continue to deceive the Chinese, the Americans told the Chinese that they could buy American Treasury Notes or IOUs which pays a good interest rate. The US$500b will then be returned to the Americans in exchange for another form of worthless notes. The Americans do not mind paying whatever interest as it will be a small fraction of the US$500b. When the Treasury Notes or IOUs are due, the Americans will sell the Chinese more notes or IOUs a second time and on and on. In effective or real terms, the Americans are printing money to buy real goods from the Chinese, and the more the better, and all they have to pay are worthless notes worth the weight of the piece of paper it printed on. And the Chinese can only look at their monthly statements showing how much the Americans owed them, and they can smile and smile and smile. That is about all they benefit from the exchange. Now comes the best part. The Americans can then accuse the Chinese for chalking huge surpluses or imbalance of trade. And the fault is with the Chinese. The Chinese is causing the problem, selling more and buying less. In the meantime the Americans got to enjoy all the goodies the Chinese produced while the Chinese got useless paper notes in the bank accounts, and cannot translate them into real stuff.

How much do we care for this country?

When Lim Zi Rui questioned the meaning of defending this country, it startled Chok Tong. But that was about as far as it went. After that things get back to normal. Who really cares about what they are defending or what this country is all about? Then we have the spate of gangland attacks in the heartland with one young man died and several got slashed. There were some murmurs in the internet but not enough. Even in my blog there were less than 50 comments on this issue. What does it mean to this nation? At the govt level, the only one that showed some anger to the break down of law and order, to some it is not really anything serious, is Alvin Yeo. Hardly anyone else talks about it. Some were heard saying, no leh, such things never happen leh. The denial is clear, but not important. Why is there so much apathy when mobs ran riot with weapons to attack the young in the heartland? Is it that everyone is so complacent, or so busy making money, not my business, or is it that nobody cares? There seems to be a lack of ownership, that this is home, our country. Now it is perhaps just another place. At least 50% of the residents will think this way as they are foreigners with no stakes here. They will pack up and leave sooner or later. But the people, the citizens, who are long term residents here must be provoked to say something or do something if they regard this place as home. 45 years of nation building has resulted in such apathy and with the young soul searching on why they need to defend this place is worrisome. We don't need one person to jump up from his grave when things are wrong in the country. We need all the citizens to jump up from their graves when things are getting wrong. Perhaps that is expecting too much. One man doing that is good enough.

The attack on the World's financial system has begun

The Americans have launched the biggest and most vicious attack to the world's financial system with special focus on Asian countries. An endless flow of funds are pumped into Asia, superficially as investment, but with the potential of destroying all the Asian economies if they are not careful. Cheap hot money in abundance does not come in with no strings attached. The worst part is that they are managed by funds that can bring down the financial system of any country. It is no simple innocent investment. It is a concerted assault on the Asian economy and financial system. Asian countries must take immediate actions to curb and restrict how these funds are to be used or invested. The stock market, currency market and housing market are the most vulnerable as they are liquid and allow the funds to come in and out quickly, leaving behind destructions and death. Asia beware! If they are stupid they will be ruined. No bullets need to be fired but the damage could be worst than military warfare.

25 arrested by Police

Police took tough actions to tackle the spate of gangland violence with 25 men arrested yesterday. 6 were in connection with the Bukit Panjang attacks and 19 were supporters of another suspect facing charges for the killing of Darren Ng in Downtown East. How many more need to be put behind bars before some sanity can return to the ground? At the moment youth counsellors are suggesting that children play in safer areas like youth centres instead of basket courts in HDB estate. Now, isn't this alarming, when HDB parks and recreation areas are now considered not too safe? And the charges in court also revealed that these mobsters are part of the loan shark army and have been harrassing the debtors with paints probably burning of cars too. Putting one and one together, the problem is much bigger and more serious than we think. Loan sharks and gangsters are now a team. So what? The days are getting darker again if darkness is not removed and allowed to proliferate. Be nicer to loan sharks and mobsters?

Police brutality

Subject: Brutal Assault... After An Accident and our police...see for yourself Click on Youtube link and see your beloved 1Malaysia and Malaysia Boleh what it has turned in to. This is what I call a "civil" society turning in to a jungle for animals. Judge for yourself what was the Police trying to do or rather did they tried to do anything to stop the assault going on!!!!!! This is just an accident and it has turned in to something totally uncalled for. Motives of the polis assault? Hit & Run Driver got caught or got simply kena hantam just like that. U judge yourself. What type of Police we have? Letting the public do as they like just because he is a chinese. So be careful if you ever involve any accident with a Malay. Drive to the Police station and make report of the incident. Don't try and settle there. You would be bash before reasoning. Can we feel safe on the road? Seeing is believing. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7IkdRdoPSgQ&feature=related

Stop the pranks

We have bear pranks, monsters and devils in the streets, just for a laugh TV pranks, and what else? Great fun no doubt, till a youth was cut down in a shopping centre and people thought it was all staged. If we keep on staging pranks in the public, in no time no one will believe anything. We told the public to be vigilance but if we keep testing them with fakes, it may have the reverse effects. People will simply ignore them at a time when it is real and needing attention. Pranks can be dangerous if not carefully managed. They can backfire.

A City of Mobs

From loan shark country we have morphed into a City of MOBS. The gangland killing in Downtown East has hardly been forgotten and a series of gangland attacks with parang wielding youths started again. This time they were more brazen, attacking one group after another and shouting their gang names. This is like the Hongkong movies, Living Dangerously, and in grand style. What law? To these youths, there is no law. There are the law. The way they went about attacking people in big groups is the strongest defiance they are showing to the law. Has the law been caught sleeping again? Have they allowed the seed to grow too far and too late to nip it in the bud? I think the problem is now quite big and serious. Perhaps we have been too nice and too kind to wayward youths. The organisations must be big and numerous. But are these wayward youths? One corner will say YES. And they will plead to leave them alone as they are simply misguided, lack of parental guidance, they will be good if given time to change their behaviour. So let them be. They were once little angels that parents hugged in kindergartens. They can't be monsters or killers! I am feeling very disgusted with the way this little island paradise is turning into.

Joke of the Day

The world's most irresponsible Empire telling China to be a responsible player. Was the invasion of Vietnam, killing hundreds of thousands of Vietnamese, maiming millions, destruction of the land and ecology, a responsible act? The invasion of Iraq on a false charge and killing/wounding millions of Iraqis and destruction the land, infrastructure and economy a responsible act? The killing of innocents in Pakistan and Afghanistan a responsible act? Approving toxic financial products into the international financial system a responsible act? Unrestraint printing of money, flooding the emerging markets with liquidity, devaluation of the US$, a responsible act? Mismanagement of the domestic economy and destructive manipulation of the world's financial system leading to its near collapse a responsible act? Support dissidents to create social and political unrest in other countries, interfering in the domestic affairs of foreign nations, a responsible act? Threatening sanctions and regime change a responsible act? Selling arms and weapons everywhere a responsible act? The Choenan Incident a responsible act? My god, America, how many people still believe in your belligerent policies and acts as benign and peaceful?

Myth 226: Govt - please tell us what you want

I have been hearing this nonsense again and again as if no body is telling the govt what the people want. What is all the kpkb for? When the property price shot through the sky, we only heard that it was market forces at work or high property price is good. And the best part, the govt cannot do anything about it, cannot meddle with market forces. Then we have foreign hoards marching in or being invited in. And all the high costs, price hikes etc etc. Not easy to make deaf frogs listen, I think. Let me try again. We don't want the country to be flooded by foreign talents. No, cannot. They are here to save you. We want our CPF money back. No, that is for your old age. We don't want any of your money sucking schemes like Medisave, CPF Life etc etc. No, they are good for you. We don't want sky rocketing property prices. No there are very cheap. We are only being polite to say that they are affordable. Can't afford, don't buy. We want better jobs with better pay. No you can't. You will become uncompetitive. Jobs will go away. We want oppositions in Parliament. That is ok. We have provided for 9 oppositions already. How many more do you want, 20, 30 or 40? We don't want money to be wasted on foreign sportsmen. No, we need to win medals. We can't afford high hospital and medical fees. Sure you can. Just buy more insurance then you don't have to pay a cent. What else is new?

USA – The biggest threat to world peace

The USA has been accusing China and any other country as a threat to world peace, a trick which it used successfully for decades to direct negative attention to everyone except itself. The European countries know about the trick but play along as it will benefit them indirectly. The silly Asian and African countries, unfortunately, believe everything the Americans said and proclaiming loudly, like a good boy, that the American is a benign and benevolent power, a saviour of the weak and smaller countries, a saviour of human rights and political oppression, a defender of freedom in the world. What a joke! The Americans have been instigating, starting and fighting wars everywhere, and killing the innocent civilians by the thousands daily. No, it is not reported in the news and nobody would want to believe this nonsense. If the Americans have been killing civilians everyday, even today and tomorrow, the great western press will be there to report them! Holy shit! The western media is part of the conspiracy. And the Americans are exporting weapons to every country to feed the American economy and provide jobs for the Americans. What rifles do you think the terrorists are using? AK47 or M16? And the sophisticated aircraft, naval crafts and missiles and bombs, mostly made in USA. And it is supporting dissidents everywhere to oppose the incumbent govts of countries not in its good list. Yes, if you are not with the Americans you are against the Americans. And now it is engaged in the worst destabilising exercise of all time, financial sabotage and printing of the greenbacks to throw at all the emerging countries across the world. The result is obvious. Financial breakdown and collapse of the world economy. And it said no, it is China’s fault, for not revaluing the Yuan. That is the root of the problem, not Americans overspending and over printing of the American dollar. The biggest threat to world peace is pointing the finger at everyone except itself. And with a bankrupt economy, with a mountain of debt, it is still engage in wars everywhere, operating the biggest armed forces that can take on the armies of the whole world combined. And still spending time and resources to form a mafia gang to contain China, whose main interest is economic development and providing cheaper products to the world and to the Americans. It just announced that it will increase its military presence in Asia so that it can react ‘robustly’ against those that were seen as enemies of the Empire. It is frantically signing up military alliances with Asian countries to fight Asians and to turn Asia into flames. And silly Asian govts are roped in as their willing accomplices. Again, which country is the greatest threat to world peace?

Is our govt selfish?

Saturday there were several pages of reports on how the poor foreign workers are losing their pants for patronising the casinos. They could lose half their salary in a few hours or several months of their salary in a few days. The amount may not be big, $500 or $2000, but still big money to them. And some are in debt and their families back home are desperate. Singaporeans are well protected by the $100 entrance levy. I have been prevented from entering the casino and lose my money because of this levy. Our govt is very good and protective over Singaporeans. Singaporeans must say thank you for such a paternalistic govt. Singaporeans are in safe hands. Should the govt also apply the levy on foreign workers as well? This group of people are very poor and cannot afford to lose. They are already in debt for coming here. Now with the casino they are going to incur more debt. Can our god protect them as well, be merciful and impose the levy on them to keep them out of the casinos? Or is our god so selfish, only protect the chosen people and let the rest suffer for their own foolishness? This is time to beg for mercy and forgiveness, and a helping hand from god. And don’t forget that a financially troubled foreign worker is likely to resort to crime and the protected Singaporeans may end up as victims.

Please don't bring down property prices

With so many people kpkb in the internet about high property prices, I mean so many people which is false as there are 80% of flat owners all wanting their property prices to go up, Hsien Loong is also worried. He is quoted to have said, 'the red-hot property market is causing consternation.' Dunno what that means. But for all the property speculators and investors, they will be fuming if the property price falls. We have been entrapped by this high property price that just happened, beyond our control, and let it be known that it must not come down, and cannot come down. Or else bodies will be falling from the sky. High property prices is a good thing as it makes all property owners feeling very rich. The more properties they have, private properties better still, the richer they will become. Let's work harder to keep the property prices higher. We don't want anyone to jump from their flats because their properties become negative assets like in the late 1990s. We have learnt our lessons, that we cannot let property prices drop like coconuts. No consternation. Just maintain the high prices to make property owners happy and everything will be alright. Sure win the next election. The kpkb in the internet is hogwash. Don't believe in them.

Invasion of Senkaku/Occupation of Diaoyutai?

I was the video clips on Youtube on the recent incident at Diaoyutai. A Chinese fishing boat was crusing in the sea and two Japanese naval came in to shadow it. Then they moved it to sandwich the Chinese ship and one moved into the path of the Chinese ship to cut it off. The provocative manoeuvre was aggressive. Intentional or not it was not easy to move out of the way or stop a ship in motion, and the Chinese ship brushed the starboard tip at the back of the Japanese ship. It is strange that the picture in the press showed the area of impact on the port side of the ship and almost in the middle section instead. How come? The Japanese video has this headline, China invasion of Senkaku. Now, is it China invasion of Senkaku or Japanese occupation of Diaoyutai? What happened in the incident is similar to the days of foreign concession in Shanghai. The foreigners, British, Russian, French, Americans, Germans, Japanese, etc etc each seized a part of China as their own and police it with their police and applying their own laws, in Chinese territory. Same as in Diaoyutai. Chinese who happened to be in the concession or occupied territories were treated as intruders or foreigners and subject to harassments by the occupied forces. They could be arrested, extorted or humiliated or chased out of the concession. And the occupied forces would declare the Chinese as intruders, or invading their territories. The truth is that the territories belonged to China, Chinese territories, and Diaoyutai is Chinese territories like the Kurile islands which are Japanese territories. The Japanese are demanding that the Russians returned the islands to them, seized from Japan in the same way as Diaoyutai from China. How could the Japanese tell the world that it was a Chinese invasion when they are occupying Chinese territory and harassing Chinese ships in Chinese waters? Bloody imperialist liars!

A Nation it never will be

This is my impression of what this island will be if the policies are not changed. We will always be in a constant state of flux, with the infusion of new people from different backgrounds, race, religion and culture, to keep the city state vibrant. And the concoction of race and religion is a highly inflammable mix that could go up in smoke in the slightest miscalculation, or a loose statement. Basically we are playing with fire. We could have made some headways after the first 40 years of nation building when the poor migrants, leftovers from the colonial legacy, and very pliable given their impoverished background and simplicity, shared a common history and growing up together, were gradually blending together with one another quite comfortably. They were less demanding of their racial, cultural or religious superiority and purity. They are quite comfortable with being chap cheng. No big deals. Things were working quite well until the policy changes of the last 10 or 15 years when foreigners were welcomed in the shiploads or planeloads to live and be part of our citizens/residents. And basically we are starting all over with a new brew. And if the policies of coveting other people’s talents are the way to go, we will continuously be in a state of change and uncertainties. We will never mature and develop into a stable society like the countries in Europe. Race, culture and religion will forever be sensitive issues as the new migrants are not the poor immigrants anymore(the foreign workers excluded as they are here only temporarily) and have high expectations, demands and pride. They will present a different threat to the establishment as they are likely to be less tolerant and adaptable to the whims and interests of lesser beans. And the price for that is that the country must be always put on a leash by a strong hand govt, and press freedom and many liberties of a mature society will be put on hold, possibly forever. An immature society with a people that do not see themselves as a people of a country or nation cannot have the luxury of a loose press and freedom of expression. The people will be immature, insensitive and would turn a well meaning debate into a personal vendetta. This is no good. So, the rigid control of the media stays…forever and ever, in a country that will never grow up, always in a state of change, with new people replacing older ones that have left. Have we traded a nation for economic growth and development, that economic growth is everything and the making of a nation is secondary, unimportant, a hotel is just as good? Secuity threats and fears are legitimate reasons to justify stringent control of the media. Maybe one day when security threats and fears have disappeared, press freedom will be returned to the people...one day....

The Singapore Death Penalty Blog

I read an article posted in the Singapore Death Penalty Blog and I must said that I am not pleased. In fact I am terribly worried. The discussion was centred on the killing of Darren Ng in Downtown East. And the Blog took to questioning the cries to hang the assailants of Darren Ng. It gives the impression that if there are good reasons to the killing, like there is no intention to kill but to harm, or that it is not just a staring incident, then perhaps it is wrong to hang the killers. Below are some of the reasons raised and I quoted from the Blog. 'There are many questions left unanswered from the incident: * Was Darren Ng murdered or mobbed (with weapons), which resulted in his death? (The implications are important as they decide the charge and sentence of the accused persons) * Was it really a simple random staring incident resulting in a cold blooded murder? * Did Darren try to stand up for his friend, which resulted in a confrontation and the mob attack? * How many of the dozen or so assailants were carrying weapons? * Was there a real intention to murder Darren, or were the knives use with the intent to cause serous injuries? * How many other suspects are still at large? * If 10 men mobbed and caused the death of one person, should all 10 be charged for murder, a crime which carries mandatory death sentence? * Out of the 4 arrested and charged for murder, who attacked Darren, how many were doing so because their peers were doing it?' Do all these reasons or questions make any difference to the vicious killing of Darren in a public place? To me it does not. A young man was killed. It was not a case of simply two persons fighting or self defence. It was a mob attack. Or a mob attack deserves lesser punishment? Oh, perhaps they just want to give Darren a few cuts without any intent of killing him. The knives were just another tool and not meant to be for killing. Oh, there are other reasons...So? And 10 people killed one man. Maybe no need to hang 10 people, only one for one? The questioning and doubts cast sound pretty sick.

A new kind of BTO Factory

When the human race begins to lose its sentimental and emotional attachments, the bonds of human relationship will gradually disappear and replace by fads of fancy. Keeping pets and treating them as dear family members are catching on around the world. People choose to shower attention, money and tender loving care to animals than to other human beans. Family as an institution is losing its grip and breaking down in some societies. Instead of dogs and cats, human pets may become a bigger attraction in times to come. With the advancement in medical science and cloning, it is quite possible to determine exactly what a new child will be, or at least look a like in the future. BTO Factories could sprout up in the not too distance future to produce babies according to the demands of the owners. Babies To Order could become a flourishing commercial activity to add to the Bride to Order biz. People can walk into such a factory and order a Lady Gaga, Harry Porter, Rudh Khan, a Sammi Cheng or a Bruce Lee off the shelf. Or they could put in their own specifications of height, colour, sex etc etc. By the time we reach this stage of human race development, no one will bother about genetic purity or lineage. Anything that fancies will do. And there will be no angst of IVF mix-up kids too. And there would not be any affinity or attachment to race. All will belong to the human race and the human family. Maybe family will no longer exist in the human vocabulary.

Brave Japanese will fight!

The militant right wing Japanese are shouting, ‘Brave Japanese will fight. Proud Japanese will fight’. And they are denouncing Naoto Kan for releasing the Chinese fishing boat captain as crumbling under China’s pressure. I really like to see Japan declaring war on China today. It will be a spectacle to watch the brave samurais wielding their Japanese swords against the Chinese broad swords. Today, the match can be very interesting. In the last century it was tanks, big guns and aircraft against bows and arrows and spears. Not anymore. Go brave Japanese, go. Banzai! Banzai! Show the world the true yakuzas behind the suit and tie. And I am not the only one instigating the Japanese and try to drive their superiority complex to a crazy pitch. Read the main media today and there are at least a couple of articles castrating the Japanese govt for being weak and unable to stand up to foreign pressure. Let’s stoke the fire of war and push the Japanese to do it. And those who can profit and benefit from wars will pop champagne and celebrate.

Qantas plane crashed near Batam

Latest news flash from Reuters. No details yet. But this seems to be a deadly one.

The mixed up kid

What a tragedy! How would the parents feel when a part of the child is theirs and the other part belongs to you know who? The latest slip in the IVF case is a terrible thing to happen to anyone. Now, how to rectify this one in a millionth error? Can rewind and start all over or not? There is no question of putting the child away. It is an innocent child created by sheer human stupidity. For the parents, can they live with the child’s mixed identity? If they don’t mind, they need not go through the trouble and pay so much money for IVF. They could simply adopt one from the orphanage. The special relationship between your own child and that of a mixed up kid cannot be replaced. In this case there is nothing in the child that the father can be emotionally or biologically attached to. It is simply somebody’s child, not his. What about the child when he/she grows up? What kind of identity should the child assume? Is this just a rare case of human error or a wicked prank? Whatever, many people would have to live miserable lives through this sickening tragedy. It is a mistake that cannot be unwound. Though no life was lost, I don’t think anyone would want to be in the shoes of the parents and the mixed up kid. Can’t imagine the trauma when they have to face the child everyday. This is like In Vitro Rape.

We have come to take the govt back!

These were the words of Rand Paul, a Tea Party candidate elected to the US Senate yesterday. The Americans are so pissed off with the all talks and empty promises President Obama that they have rebelled and voted in the Republicans into the House of Representatives and narrowing the Democrat’s majority in the Senate. This is a clear and powerful message from a disgruntled electorate. It could be a useful theme for our next general election. The time may be here for the people to take back the govt if they are not happy with the ways things are moving. So, are they satisfied with the incumbent govt and would like them to continue doing what they are doing? Or are they going to say enough is enough and time to take back the govt to do things the people want? Everyone is talking about a watershed election. What will change and will change for the better? Or would it be more of the same, no change is necessary except cosmetics, like more loser MPs? From the PAP side, it is quite certain many of the yodas will not be around anymore, including LKY. On the opposition side, will there be more professional and good people coming forward to give the people a better choice and make this a really watershed election? Would the rally cry be, 'We have come to take back the govt'?

Why can’t the Australians understand?

‘Temasek is a tax-paying investment company which was incorporated in 1974. Our board and management make our investment, divestment and other company decisions on a commercial basis, independently of our shareholder, the Singapore government. The board comprises a majority of non-executive independent private-sector business leaders. A third of our staff, including senior management, are non-Singaporeans from 20 countries. Our CEO was appointed by the board with the independent concurrence of the President of Singapore.... Temasek plays no part in the governance, operations or investment decisions of the Singapore Exchange. Simon Israel, Executive Director and President, Temasek Holdings’ The above is quoted from The Australian. The relationship between the Singapore Govt and Temasek or between Temasek and the SGX is strictly business done with a ten foot pole apart. Temasek is independent of the Govt and the SGX is independent of Temasek. Is this so difficult to comprehend? Every Singaporean understands this logic and is very clear that they are all separate entities and operate independently with only making money as their main objectives. Why are the Australians trying to mix everything together as one rojak dish, that SGX is Temasek, and Temasek is the Singapore Govt? Singaporeans are very familiar with the Govt’s logic and way of explaining things and have no problem understanding the official logic. For foreigners, maybe it is a little different. They don’t think like us and they don’t want to understand our logic. They may think that we are weird or trying to hoodwink them. We shall forgive them for their unwillingness to see our point of view and their stubbornness to resist our takeover of the ASX. They did not know that we are doing it for their own good.

BTO is anti family

A forum writer, Sim Siew Chien, wrote to the ST a few months back, complaining that the BTO scheme is detrimental to young people getting married and having children. She said many young people were forced to live separately after getting married as they have to wait for BTO to complete building their flats. Now whose fault is this? It is definitely not the govt or HDB’s fault. The young people must plan their marriages ahead. Why do they wait till they want to shit then look for jamban? So the wise men say or think. Getting hitch is so easy. With so many matchmaking agency, I also think so. Just place an order. The BTO scheme is the most intelligent, brilliant, and farsighted scheme thought out by the most brilliant supertalents we have. And they are not paid millions for coming out with stupid schemes. This is the best scheme they can think of. How could the low thinking public complain that it is bad? The public just does not have the brain to appreciate the beauty and brilliance of this scheme. It is unfair to complain about it. Just live with it. Just remember that it is the best scheme. It is the most efficient scheme for HDB. As for the people who needs a flat urgently, is it a good scheme? “My brother got engaged, but lost his engagement because he could not afford an HDB flat,” said Lim Zi Rui, the engineering student from NTU during Chok Tong’s dialogue with the students. For people like Zi Rui’s brother, very likely they would not even apply for a flat as they could not afford it. And they will not form part of the statistics to create a demand for BTO flats. No flats will be built for such losers. I am not sure how big is this pool of unable to afford to apply for HDB flats? Anyway, they are irrelevant and HDB need not sweat to build flats for them. Only those who can afford HDB flats need apply. This is the beauty of the BTO. No waste and everyone who applies will say the flats are affordable.

A little disorder is good

We have seen the loan sharks upgrading their skills and tactics in chasing after their debtors. From pouring paints onto doors and letter boxes, they have upped their ante by burning cars. I am wondering what kind of training they would get next to make themselves more efficient and effective. Burning houses? Then Downtown East, a Halloween style bloodied body turned out to be real. Our youngsters are having too good a time, and couldn't find any purpose in life but to form gangs and patrol shopping centres looking and staring at one another. And if the staring gets too intense, they will be fumed to want to gorge out the other's eyes. More and more fights between the young and their gangs are appearing in the news. Maybe this is a welcome change that we need, to throw the country into a little disorder for the new generations to appreciate what orderliness is all about. Or maybe this is the new fun that the new generations want. More blood and gore in the streets. And gangsterism is a new way of life, a return to the stylo 60s. How did these happen and grow unrestrained? Just like loan sharks, a soft pair of hands will be seen as incompetence and weakness and nothing to fear. And with a law enforcing force that is so well educated and well mannered, it is tough to face up with the toughies, a kind of mismatch. And there will be the goody and kind hearted who would want to protect the waywards and the criminals as pityful people that need help and protection, need to be saved. Welcome a little lawlessness.

Asean in Transformation

A gathering of small and medium countries, and wanted to be left alone, in peace, to develop their own economies and the lives of their people. That was what Asean used to be, avoiding big power conflicts and staying away from becoming proxies in big power rivalries. That was how ZOPFAN, zone and peace, freedom and neutrality came about. Today, Asean has grown bigger, economically, structurally and militarily. It starts to have wild ambitions, to start bickering with each other’s internal affairs and to challenge bigger powers, and ganging up with big powers to achieve its aims. Consciously or unconsciously, it has accepted the US as the de facto leader of Asean, doing away with its neutral status. Non alignment is no longer its mission. During its days of neutrality, Asean was able to grow peacefully, and also stayed out of big power conflicts. Today, it is inviting big power rivalry into the organization. It courts big power influence and protection to compete with other big powers. For that, it is willing to surrender its own leadership to a big power and become subservient or proxy states of big powers. Would this transformation of Asean lead the region into a state of turmoil and warfare? Has Asean really believe that engaging in big power politics and struggle of power and influence a desired development for the small and medium states? Has Asean grown a head that is too big for itself and wanted to play a bigger role in international affairs which it thinks it deserves? While Asean is being seduced by big power attention and bathing in the limelight, let Asean not forgotten what happened in Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan. Dancing with the big bad wolf has a disastrous price to pay.

China involved in largest number of conflicts???!!!

‘China, significantly, has been involved in the largest number of military conflicts in Asia. A recent Pentagon report is unsparing: “The history of modern Chinese warfare provides numerous case studies in which China’s leaders have claimed military preemption as a strategically defensive act.’ It then went on to quote the Korean War, (the world knew who brought the war to China’s border), the border war with India in 1962, ( and yes, who started it?), with the Soviet Union, to reclaim lost Chinese territories, and the war with Vietnam, (again, who started it?). China involved in the largest number of military conflicts in Asia? What about the Americans? The professor never heard of the USA? Matilah has this to say, ‘Meanwhile since the 18th century, America has been involved in 200 or so "armed conflicts" all of them overseas -- in "OPC" - Other Peoples' Cuntries.’ Anyone bother to count? Starting from the Korean War, Vietnam War, the Middle East, Europe, not counting Latin America and Europe… And the claim that China is involved in the largest conflict came from a Brahma Chellaney, professor of strategic studies at the Centre for Policy Research in New Delhi. What kind of academic integrity does he have when he can’t even count or refuses to acknowledge the great involvement of the Americans in military conflicts. The scale of the wars waged by the Americans, in any one of them is thousands of times more severe and destructive than all the conflicts the Chinese were involved. And this foolish article titled The Chinese conundrum, appears in today’s Straits Times. By the way, how many military adventures have India been involved since it became independent? How many times had India fought with its neighbours and the little islands in the Indian Ocean?

What’s so great about the Singapore Spirit?

"When I was younger, I was very proud of being a Singaporean. But that was about five, 10 years ago. Five years later, with all the changes in policies and the influx of foreign talent, I don't know what I'm defending anymore. I feel that there is a dilution of the Singapore spirit in youth... We don't really feel comfortable in our country anymore." By Lim Zi Rui, a final year Engineering student of NTU The Singapore Spirit is something that we can vaguely remember as the thing that helped to build this city state. There are still fond memories being cherished by the young and old. Is it still there or it is gone? Or it is no longer good enough, that we need the new hungrier spirit of the new immigrants to save us, to give us a kick in the back to wake us up? The official wisdom today is as good as saying that the Singapore Spirit no longer living in the young Singaporeans. We need more vibrant and enthusiastic and smarter foreigners if we are to move ahead. If this is the mentality, then many European countries will end up like the dinosaurs. The truth is that the well managed European countries are those that stay close to their own spirits and not those that are flooded with foreigners and with foreign spirits. The latter are seeing a decline in their quality of life, and chaos and social disorders are becoming a norm, threatening the very system that the foreigners came to benefit. If the fad of new and new spirits is anything to go by, there is no need to visit Finland to learn from them. The Finns don’t hunger nor pander for more hungrier immigrants to lift up their lives and economy. Simply, they don’t need new immigrants. They can make do with themselves and their own spirit of survival and do very well with their own people. They are confident of themselves and their own people. So, what is this Singapore Spirit? Is this something great or something that is best forgotten and replace with a new migrant spirit? Or is this a Spirit that runs down its own people as helpless and goners, and there is an urgent need to find a new Spirit to replace it? Shouldn't the Singapore Spirit be like the matured European countries, believe in themselves and their own people and continuously improving their own standard of living without having to hope or beg the hopeless and nothing to lose dare devils from the lost countries to mess up their systems and lives? When I referred to matures European countries, count England, France and Spain out. They will be destroyed by the foreigners they foolishly brought in.

‘Best losers’ guaranteed seats in Parliament

In his dialogue with NTU students, Chok Tong told them that our Constitutions have been tweaked to guarantee that the ‘best losers’ in a general election will still get to Parliament. At present 9 seats were provided for the losers. Is this a concession, a grace or an effective alternative to having opposition members in Parliament? What is the purpose of having oppositions in Parliament? Personally I do not want to be represented by losers, and definitely not losers that cannot vote when serious issues are at stake. Maybe other people will disagree with me on this. Some may just want to have an alternative voice in Parliament and whether they can vote on issues is not important. Some Singaporeans are smart enough to just want a voice but not to oppose the policies or rock the boat. A little kpkb in Parliament to let out some steam should be enough. After all the govt is doing a very good job and let’s not be too serious in having opposition members in Parliament. There is no need for real oppositions. Consider this as a pragmatic view from some corners of the masses. How many really feel it this way? If they do, then the govt has read the ground well. They may even provide more seats for more losers, as long as they cannot vote. But if this is not the desire of the people, would it make any difference in the coming election? Or would the next general election be a watershed election in more than one ways? Who needs losers by the way?

And we thought George Bush Jr was crazy

The woman was invited to the East Asia summit In Hanoi. Before she even warmed her seat she declared that she was the leader of the summit and she was taking over. And she lectured the Asian leaders on how their territorial disputes should be resolved, in her ways of course. Then she strapped a magnum .457 in between her tights, tugged another behind the back of the Japanese PM and turned to tell the Chinese that she had appointed herself as the mediator for the China Japan island dispute. She did not think the Asian leaders were capable of handling their own affairs and only she has the wisdom and leadership to lead them and solve their problems. The Empire strikes back with a joker. In an era when war between the two superpowers is obsolete, both nuclear and conventional, the Empire can no longer threaten China with the use of force. The silly war games of beach landing belong to the 20th century. Today, any hostile ships within a 200 miles radius of China will be sunk, the bigger the easier. This applies to aircraft as well. The immense fire and destructive power, the sophistication and accuracy of modern weaponry have made war a no option. War is only possible when there is a disproportionate balance of military strength between the two protagonists. Iraq is a good example. China should stand firm and not allow the evil Empire to dictate terms and think that it still controls the world. China should make it know that its territories taken by foreign forces through unequal treaties must be returned, that it will not honoured any treaties signed under coercion during the days of gunboat diplomacy. It is too polite to use such a term. It was a time of gangsterism in international relations when big powers plundered the weaker nations by threats of wars or wars. The injustice should be made right by the light of justice.

Turning greed on its head

Half a billion is small change to him. When people are buying fast cars as a hobby, he is buying football clubs. That is what money can do when you have enough of it. Peter Lim did not get his Liverpool Football Club. It could be a blessing in disguise. He has just acquired Thomson Medical Centre for half a billion bucks. This in all sense is a much more meaningful buy. And he could make it more meaningful to himself and to the people in the streets. Peter Lim is getting close to a state like Bill Gates and Warren Buffett, though still far away, but he could still uttered, huh, another $500m profit, what shall I do with it? He is comfortable enough that another half a billion is not going to make him a different person or to excite him. So what is he going to do with his new acquisition? To make more profits, to live the Singapore ethos that profit is everything, or to live the Gecko mantra that greed is good? Could he turn the Medical Centre into an institution to benefit the people at large? Medical cost is spiralling up like housing prices. Of course it need not be if there is less greed. Here we have a man who does not need any more small change of half a billion. He could be another philanthropist in the making. What Singapore need is a no frill hospital to serve the people without breaking their bank account for every admission. We need a hospital to make a point that medical and hospitalisation fees need not keep going to the sky. Would Peter Lim answer to this higher calling, that making money and more money is not the only reason to live? That money shall be made to good use, that one’s good fortune can be share with the common folks and the less fortunate. No one is going to begrudge him should he take the conventional path, to turn it into another successful business enterprise, and making more money for himself. And one day he will join Gates and Buffett, to give the money away because he just have too much of it.

Temasek Review, New Temasek Review

I thought Temasek Review has changed its name to New Temasek Review. I am pleasantly surprised to see the original name reappears again. This is a good sign.

The USAS

The hysterics were unbecoming. Who would expect the Australians to behave like third world countries and kpkb just because some entrepreneurs saw a good opportunity to raise their bets in the merger of the two stock exchanges? The Australians are behaving and jumping around like some of our neighbours, rearing the ugly xenophobic face of little townfolks. Can any of the politicians see any good in the merger? The benefits that can spew out of this venture are tremendous for both sides. For Singapore it is obvious. We can break out from the constraints of a little dot with Australia as our hinterland. We can proceed from here towards a greater economic and social integration, a kind of United States of Australia and Singapore. Of course, political integration is something that we shouldn't talk about at the moment. This will release a lot of pressure from our system, particularly the constraints of land, which is self inflicted in the first place. More Singaporeans can move on to the big island and relieve the pressure in the property bubble. Provided the thick heads did not stuff in more foreigners here to replace them and everything back to normal. Our dependent on food supply will be solved with the agricultural products from Oz. The advantages are enormous and can fill the pages of a library. Same for Australia. We will help Australia to effectively plug itself into Asia, as a member or extended member of Asean. The dynamism of this little dynamo can be infectious, and together with the liquidity here, it will be boom town Charlie for Australia. Growth will be everywhere, in all sectors. The Aussies can continue with their laidback lifestyle and enjoy the boom while the Sinkies will do the donkey work for them in developing this big island. Win win huh. The USAS is still the longer term goal and not far fetch. Australia, New Zealand and Singapore have been cooperating for 40 years in the 5 Nation Defence Pact. We have a similar history and colonial system, and colonial mentality. I think Singaporeans would welcome the chance to sing God Save the Queen once more. And Peter Lim can buy Liverpool and be welcomed as one of time. In fact we can buy up all the British football Clubs as well, once we become a part of Australia. Then we can bring the English Premier League to play in the Golden Triangle of Singapore, England and Australia. The possibilities are unimaginable, starting from just this humble begining of a ASX-SGX merger. Think about it mate.

Obama and his new hunting dogs

I read in the New York Times that Obama has acquired three new dogs to do his bidding and will use them, together with Japan, to contain China's growing influence. The eager beavers are so elated after being wined and dined in the White House and being 'consulted' by the Empire that they are thinking that they are part of the Empire. Other containment efforts by Obama, despite the empty Treasury and a mountain of debt, are the expansion of military base infrastructure in Guam in the Pacific Ocean and the island of Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean. The beefing of all these military bases serves only one purpose, to entrench America's presence in the guise of defending the free world, but actually to contain China and protect American interest. There is a neo colonialist agenda in the American Administration and the old colonies, British, Dutch, French or Americans, were jsut too happy to be part of it. Asia can expect heighten tension and possibly proxy wars between America and China, but with the two protagonists looking from the sideline. And smaller Asian countries will gear up to kill each other or at least spend more on American weapons to provide more employment for the Americans.

$8 for a heart bypass!

Khaw Boon Wan said his bypass surgery which normally costs about $30k in an A class ward ended with him paying only $8. That is cheaper than buying two packs of panadol from a pharmacy. He claimed that he had Medishield and topped up by a supplement medical insurance. Knowing miserly is the payout from Medishield, with co payment, I am very interested to know the break down in his medical bill and how much each of his insurance paid for him. Let us have a peep on the details, Boon Wan. And also let us know how much premium you are paying for the Medishield and the supplement insurance. If it is meaningful and makes financial sense, I think many people will like to have the same insurance coverage. Thank you.

Australia unmasking its racist face

Just listen to the polemics made by the opposition to SGX acquiring ASX and you can see the truth behind the noise. As a business transaction, it is a great deal where both parties will benefit. The Australian investors are the first to benefit in a big way, they could actually cash out and still own a big chunk of the new ASX-SGX which I thought should be renamed SAX, short for Singapore Australia Xchange. It also sounds more sexy. For all the accusations, which is the standard tactics employed by the West against Asians or their enemies, to point the finger first and let the victim to defend himself can Australia hike from its true nature? In the process the victim will forget about the accuser's own imperfections. For a country that prospers after centuries of racist policies, abuses and discriminations against the local natives, Australia should be shameful of itself to talk about human rights and freedom. This is a smaller version of the Americans. The biggest arms merchant in the world, the most highly armed nation, the greatest currency manipulator, the biggest violator of human rights, not just the past in the form of genocide and slavery. Just think Guantanamo, Abu Graib, Afghanistan, Pakistan will do. If one still did not get the picture, go to Wikileaks. The Americans are the worst warmongers in modern history, starting wars and fighting wars and with a huge industry that thrives on wars, providing employments to its own people and soldiering. What else does it possess and do that is anti humanity and against world peace? But it keeps pointing its finger at China and other countries for all the above violations when it is the number one culprit. All the wars and tension in the world today is caused by the Americans. Yes BSE, blame somebody else, and think that the world will be stupid enough to believe them. It is always other people's faults.

World highest home price appreciation

According to a report by Knight Frank, Singapore's home price appreciation is the highest in the world at 37%. China came close at 36.8% and Hongkong was a far third at 24.9%. This is the best news for property owners and property speculators. It is time for celebration. Singaporeans are getting richer by the day, with their properties hitting new highs. Many public housing owners are really millionaires in their own right. Don't be surprised the taxi driver driving the maids and foreign workers around is a millionaire himself. This will be another first for Singapore with millionaire taxi drivers. More important is to go out and grab another property fast. Property prices here can only go one way, up and up and away. And there is no fear of a property bubble forming. Singaporeans are wealthy, and according to all the reports, the properties they bought are all affordable and within their means. So there is no fear of bankruptcies and foreclosures. And those foreigners buying properties here are filthy rich and mostly paying cash. So very little risk of loan defaults. What else, even land for public housing are only awarded to the highest bidder, which means new housing can only be more expensive. And with land so scarce, and with the population going to increase further, one thing is guaranteed, higher property prices. And more than 80% of Singaporeans will be resting on their laurels, as they are all property owners. They are waiting for their eggs to turn into gold, literary. There will be millionaires all around, not only taxi drivers, but many of those taking public transport too. Basically looking right and left one is likely to bump into a Singaporean millionaire.

ERP rate hike

23 ERP gantry points will hike its rate by $1 come 1 Nov. Ford Road exit from ECP and Kallang Paya Lebar Expressways will now charge $4 instead of $3 for each crossing. Other gantries will increase from $2 to $3 and $1 to $2. With the hike, travelling in the expressways will be smoother and faster. The only problem is that the minor roads will be more congested as drivers trying to avoid paying the higher fees will be diverted to them. And once these roads become jammed, motorists will complain again and there is a high possibility that gantries will be erected in the minor roads to alleviate the traffic conditions there. This is a never ending musical chair game.

A buy out, sell out or a merger?

In very simplistic terms that a layman can understand, a buy out is done when one company pays another company, normally with a premium, and take over the other company, lock stock and barrel. In a sell out it is just the reverse. In the SGX/ASX case, SGX pays ASX shareholders a sum plus X premium dollars, and it ended up in a merger. So it is not a buy out and SGX does not take over ASX, or does it? In the case of a merger, normally both parties will make a valuation of the shares and use that as a basis to determine the number of shares each owns in the merged company. You don’t normally over value one against the other or pay a huge premium. Premium only applies to a buy out. The monetary consideration goes as follows. SGX values the ASX shares at A$48 a share, inclusive of a 37% premium. This will be paid in SGX shares at around 3.5 SGX shares for each ASX shares and another $22 in cash. That is what an ASX shareholders will end up with. After paying these shares and money, does SGX owns the new company and all of ASX? No? It is reported that the market cap of SGX is $7.86b while ASX is worth $6b. This deal is touted as a merger. An ASX shareholder will now own 3.5 SGX shares and still getting a cash of $22 or a total equivalent of 45% of the $8.2b payout. (Today it is reported as $11b based on the same A$8.4b) If this is so, this amount is enough to buy over half of the existing SGX shares in the SGX, which only has a market cap of $7.86b with some to spare. And the Australian share holders could own half of all the shares in SGX plus all the SGX shares in ASX. Am I wrong? What does SGX owns eventually after the payout, and what is the benefit to a SGX shareholder? If it is only a merger, then there is no need to pay a hefty 37% premium. If it is a buy out, I can agree to a premium though how big is the premium depends on many factors. So, is it a buyout or a merger?

Red Dot buying over Australia

This is perhaps the biggest taking over in history. A tiny Red Dot buying over Australia...well almost. SGX is buying over the Australian Stock Exchange and paying cash! All $8.2b to take over the Australian Exchange. What is $8.2b? This is chicken feed knowing the war chest in our hands. This is only the beginning. Next destination, New York Stock Exchange. Let's buy over all the major Exchanges around the world. I will consider this a major strategic move, like the buying over of some of the biggest banks a couple of years ago. Just make sure this time round the exchanges are not rotten apples like the banks, that were infallible but fell like coconuts. If the homework is done properly, and no cans of worms, this is a giant step forward for a little Red Dot. And it is good to think big. I have always been advocating the buying over of the whole of Australia, starting with North Western Australia, the nearest state to home. We are making a difference, eh. Matilah, you can't run away from little Red Dot. We will call Australia the Red Continent! And you can call yourself Singaporean once more. : )

Myth 225 - The myth of superiority

A Singapore ship was hijacked by pirates off the African coast! The pirates of the Somalian/Kenyan coasts are proving to be invincible. There is an armada of international naval ships patrolling the area, all armed and equipped with the best that money can buy. And the naval personnel are from the best military and technologically advanced countries today. They are also assisted by satellites, brilliant intelligence officers, radars, and manning round the clock to do just one thing, prevent piracy. And they failed miserably. Who are these super human pirates and what kind of stealth technology are they developing that can sneak through the most highly guarded military zone to continue with their piracy at will, anytime, any place at their own calling? The advanced military countries are literally held at ransom by these not so sophisticated pirates and could do nothing about it! What a shame, what a myth!

Political asylum for Assange

Julian Assange is now no better than a political dissident in the US and the Western world. His life and freedom are at stake. They may put a bullet through his head to end his works of exposing hypocrisies, crimes against humanity and deceit at the highest level of public office in America. China should offer political asylum to Assange and his team of dissidents, provide them with a safe sanctuary to pursue freedom of the expression, freedom of the press, human rights, and prevention of genocide through unilateral declaration of war and using myths or distorted truths as excuses. China, why are you waiting, when the US is harbouring all the anti China dissidents and promoting anti China verbiage through supporting their activities? Your turn to do the same, to protect the champions of human rights and press freedom and coercion from the evil Empire.

Celebrating Julian Assange

I reserve the column Celebrating Singaporeans for notable Singaporeans who have done something really worthwhile to be recognised. This is my little equivalent of an Award, The Redbean Award in recognition of contribution to human beans in little Red Dot. No, Julian Assange is not a Singaporean. But he and his friends have done something that is much more than another other human beans have done, and its impact can be felt across the world, transcending national boundaries, racial and religious barriers. Julian and his friends have taken on the world's most powerful evil empire disguising as the Empire of Goodness. The evil Empire has been lying by the skin of its teeth, claiming to be fighting for freedom, freedom of expression, human rights, the rights to fair trial, to be treated humanely and with dignity even as prisoners of war, and the right to live and choose one's own way of life. Yesterday, Julian Assange and his friends have released nearly 400,000 war logs of American deceptions and atrocities in Iraq. It is revealing a truth that only exceptionally motivated human beans would dare to do, taking own the mammoth machiney of the Empire. They are risking everything, their lives and freedom, to tell the truth, for a better world. They stood by the American Constitutions of Freedom and Free Press. They quoted this in their website. '3.3 Should the press really be free? In its landmark ruling on the Pentagon Papers, the US Supreme Court ruled that "only a free and unrestrained press can effectively expose deception in government." We agree. The ruling stated that "paramount among the responsibilities of a free press is the duty to prevent any part of the government from deceiving the people and sending them off to distant lands to die of foreign fevers and foreign shot and shell." ' In every chapter of human civilisation, when evil has taken over control of the human race, some exceptional men and women will appear to change the rule of the game and bring light to a world of darkness. Though Julian Assange and his men and women would not be deemed worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize Committee, only war mongers like Obama and maybe George Bush Junior were found more worthy, they deserve to be celebrated by the freedom loving people of the world.

Everything is subsidised!

Leong Sze Hian wrote in TOC about his friend's encounter with govt privatised hospital and private profit making hospital and the fees they charged. The govt privatised hospital's fees are heavily subsidised(that was I think) while the private hospital fees are not. For the operation of a cyst that took 15 minutes, the cost quoted by the govt privatised hospitals that included paying a visit to the polyclinic to earn the right for subsidies came to $600. Leong's friend went direct to a private hospital, preparing to pay more as there was no subsidy and the bill came to $287. And this did not take into consideration the wait and wait because of the long queue of subsidised patients waiting to be treated in privatised govt hospitals. Below is the detail numbers quoted from Leong Sze Hian's article. 'She subsequently went to a private hospital, and was operated on, on the spot by a surgeon, in a 15 minute day surgery, costing only $287. The total costs of the polyclinic consultation ($9.50), Government restructured hospital consultation ($29 after a $57 subsidy) and day surgery, were $600. Since there are no subsidies in private hospitals, it is puzzling why a simple 15 minute cysts removal day surgery at a Government restructured hospital’s subsidised rate is more than double that of a private hospital.' Sometimes it can be very scary when one hears the term subsidies. The subsidies for public housing is just as pleasantly scary. Who needs more subsidies please put up your hand.

Yes we need help...No we don't

Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa said the haze is an international problem and Indonesia cannot do it alone to control it. No thanks, we can handle it ourselves, said Gusti Muhammed Hatta, the State Minister for Environment, when Yaacob Ibrahim called to offer help. Do they want help or not? Oh, this is the first time that they had such a big fire and big haze? My eyeballs are rolling all over. Maybe Marty has been staying overseas for too long and just returned to Indonesia. Maybe next he is going to say is that this haze is a once in 50 years occurrence, no need to worry. Given the severity of the situation and the health of Malaysians and Singaporeans are at stake, this cannot continue to go on and on every year. We have been suffering from this, and so do the Indonesians themselves. A solution could have been in hand after so many long nights dreaming over it. Both Malaysia and Singapore will be most willing to help, to contribute to prevent this international pollution of the air. Forget about second hand smoke from tobacco. This is far more serious and widespread. And no, Malaysia and Singapore will not give any aid in the form of money or a free satellite. What could be possible is a joint task force of fire fighters and equipment, stationed in various parts of Sumatra to be on call to put out the fires. This will be attacking the problem directly, putting the fire out, nothing more nothing less, with the Indonesians in charge and Malaysia and Singapore providing the manpower and resources. Boleh Pak? Cukup Pak?

What if it is Agent Orange?

The perennial blanket covering of Singapore and Malaysia by haze arising from forest burning is becoming an annual Great Expectation. We knew it is coming, and we know that there is nothing that we can do about it. We can ask to talk to them, call for conference, ministerial meetings, but the haze will still come. Perhaps we shall just yield to their demand for a multi million dollar satellite and see if they will stop burning. The chances are that the burning will continue as the satellite could do nothing except to tell them where the burning is taking place, which we already know. They will probably make the best use of the free satellite for other commercial pursuits. The thing is that everyone is treating this as just a nuisance. What if it is Agent Orange or something more toxic? They don't need an armed invasion or an army to decimate Malaysia and Singapore. It is so easy and cheap.

A standing Orgy

It was a case of meat to meat. The people were literally glued to one another. They were squeezed so tightly that if you remove their clothings, the flesh could have fused together. The breathing was heavy. The eyes were in a daze, some in a state of shock and disbelief. Wet, yes, I could see that everyone was wet, perspiring and sweating, young and old, men and women. It was a standing orgy alright. And I was caught in the midst, right in the thick of action. The foreign workers loved every minute of it. That was the standard of public transportation they were used to. I was wondering how the cleanly dressed female office workers and the little girls in school uniform felt about the big squeeze. And this standing orgy will repeat and can repeat practically everyday. All it needs is for the train to delay for 15 mins. And that was how long my morning train took to arrive. And everything slowed down. At every station the commuters going down would have to squeeze slowly through a mess of fusion meat. It took quite a while, and a big struggle to get out of the train. And to make matter worst, the huge crowd outside were panicky, trying to force themselves into the party, to join the orgy. The time taken for the journey simply doubled. This little delay can cripple the normal lifestyle and routine of the commuters. It can bring everything to a halt if the breakdown is extended. This is the price we are paying for living it up to the limits. Good to increase the population to 6m. We can increase to 10m with a little clever planning. And we can have orgies everyday too. Nice!

All Japanese must not forget Unit 731

What is Unit 731? Just google for it and a detailed description will be available in Wikipedia. For those who intend to, please be warned that it is not good for weak stomach. It describes the monstrous Japanese and their barbaric crimes in World War 2 in China. For ignoramous Japanese like Seiji Maehara, Shintaro Abe, Junichiro Koizumi and the likes, either they refuse to know their history or Japanese school left out this part altogether. If Japan continues to ignore their historical crimes, they can never dream of a peaceful co existence with China and Korea in the long term. Unless they recognized their evil deeds, repent, and return all the loots they robbed from the two countries, including territories and islands, you just would not know when someone in the future will take these issues up and start a war with Japan. While there is time, it is only honourable and decent, and rightful for Japan to return what they had taken. It would put them in a better light than to pretend the past did not happen, they did not commit any crimes to their neighbours and the land or islands seized were inheritance from their forbears. They were robbed from their neighbours at gun point. If they don’t return today, one day they will be taken back at gun point, for sure. The Japanese leaders and people better have the wisdom to do the necessary and clean up this bad patch of their history with their neighbours, once and for all.

The Stock Exchange should go 24 hrs

SGX is still pushing for continuous trading with no lunch break to improve trading volume and to capitalise on the connectivity with other operating exchanges. Though the idea is good, it is half hearted. SGX should go all the way, provide continuous trading round the clock. This will make SGX the only stock exchange that never sleeps and investors who have insomnia or in different time zones can always call our exchange to trade till their hearts contend. This will definitely generate all the volumes that SGX intended and even propel SGX to become the world's number One stock exchange. It will be another feather in our hat. There should be no problems with our pool of remisiers and broking house employees. They will welcome such a great idea with glee. Plentiful of money to be made. The broking houses can help by redesigning the trading area with beds attached to the terminals so that remisiers can literally trade, eat and sleep in the same place. I would suggest something similar to the SQ jumbo airbus first class seat cum bed. That would allay any protest from the remisiers. Just make them comfortable and happy. Anyway the remisiers are very pliable and adaptable bunch and would just adapt to the new demands. They don't have a troublesome union to fight for humanly working hours or other craps that make operating the business difficult. There will be fatigue and stress problems no doubt. Just provide more steriod jabs in case they need them. And if they make mistakes, the stock exchange should be generous enough to pay for their errors. Working in a highly stress environment, none stop for 8 to 10 hours, can be killing and mistakes are bound to happen. And working 24 hours is a new ball game. No joke. If the maids can cope with working for 24 hours without any problems, I think remisiers too should be able to do it equally well. Take this as an experiment and if it works well, other industries too can go on 24 hours non stop operations. Our Ministries and Ministers too can work 24 hours to increase their productivity. 24 hours is the way to go. Make Singapore a city that never sleeps.

The housing predicament - What we do not know

One thing for sure, we do not know that we have limited land, that land is scarce. We do not know that we should not be selling our landed properties to foreigners, like selling Alaska, gone forever. We do not know that property speculation is bad, as a home is a must have essential asset, a roof over our heads. We do not know that prudence is good, or at least until yesterday. We also do not know that the laws of demand and supply can wreak havoc to our property market. We do not know that allowing private property owners to buy public housing will inflate property prices, and that is bad. We do not know that allowing more foreigners into the island will result in high demand for property prices and high speculation. And we also do not know who is the main cause of high property price. Maybe now we know, or do we?

War Dead Medal Tally

What I would like to see is for Asian media to maintain a War Dead Medal Tally similar to the Olympic or Commonwealth Medal Tally to be viewed by their audience daily during news presentation. In this case instead of Gold, Silver and Bronze, the count will be war dead by nationals, those killed in the ensuing wars in Asia. The Tally Board shall read for example, Iraqi 1200 Afghan 800 Pakistan 600 Palestinian 500 Israeli 100 American 300 English 150 German 30 French 20 Australian 10 Such a Tally Board not only serves the purpose of tracking the number of war dead, it also gives a clear picture of the people that have been sacrificed in the name of country and nation or as war collateral. It also helps to remind the politicians who support and promote the wars to know the number of lives they have killed. For the moment I think only the Americans and the Europeans are interested or care about the lives of their citizens killed in wars. The rest don’t matter. Or is it? I am sure the rest of the countries too value the lives of their citizens and those killed in wars, directly or indirectly. The statistics should not be difficult to obtain as every country involved will have their reporters reporting in the war zones. Not only that the media will be doing its duty to report and tell the pain and sufferings of wars, it will also remind people that as long as wars are not stopped, people are being killed daily. By not reporting them, by not knowing the numbers, no one feels guilty, no one can relate the horrors and grief of the victims of wars. I really hope some Asian media will take up this proposal as the Western media do not think it as their responsibility to do so, nor would they want to tell the evil side of the story of wars started by their trigger happy Presidents/Prime Ministers. Al Jazeeera and Channel News Asia are suitable candidates to take on this task to educate the people on wars, and indirectly to stop proliferating wars. Countries waging wars should also know that the world is watching at their evil and wicked deeds. It is a duty to humanity to tell the story of wars and war dead to keep people from thinking that war is only a movie.

Pressing all the right buttons

Mah Bow Tan was very impressive in Parliament yesterday. He was pressing all the right buttons and saying all the right things. I like the word prudence, the need for prudence in buying properties. I like to hear him going after those overseas properties, though I don't agree with him. I like what he said about more calibrated measures to control property prices. Though prices will not fall, they will not go up as much as 5% per quarter, only 3%, giving an annual increase of 12%. Not bad for property appreciation. Still got chance to hit $1m for HDB flats. The Ministry of National Development is doing a great job in managing the housing problem. Soon there will be no housing problems to talk about. Or maybe someone will say you cannot expect to have zero problems. But just don't create more problems to be solved by brilliant remedies.

Is China trigger happy?

According to Paul Krugman, Professor of economics and international affairs at Princeton University, China is. He referred to the recent Diaoyutai Incident when the Japanese Navy arrested a Chinese fishing boat captain and China's withholding the sale of rare earth to Japan and made this comment. '...the incident shows a Chinese govt that is dangerously trigger happy, willing to wage economic warfare on the slightest provocation.' What is the US doing in pressuring China to revalue the Yuan? Not trigger happy, just an American right to do so? What about the calls for trade sanctions, branding China a currency manipulator when the US is the real currency manipulator, printing more and more money and depreciating its own currency? But wait, let's talk about trigger happy? What was the reason for the invasion of Iraq? In this case, real bullets were fired. No, not real bullets, bombs, all kinds of bombs were thrown into Iraq, killing hundreds of thousands of innocent Iraqis. No this is not trigger happy to the Americans. What about Pakistan and Afghanistan? Oh, the Americans are using water pistols to shoot at their enemies. So the Americans are not trigger happy. They only squeeze water at their enemies. This is the American hypocrisy! They can be trigger happy but point the fingers at other people. Has China fire a single bullet? But he is only talking about economic warfare, firing economic guns. Which country has been enforcing economic sanctions on other countries on its own terms? China has been the victims of all kinds of economic sanctions from the Americans even till today. No need to mention North Korea, the Middle Eastern countries and all countries branded as enemies of the US. The US is not trigger happy. China is, according to Paul Krugman and most of the Americans who can speak and write. And they all believe in this hypocrisy as the American and western truth.

The relevance of copyrights and internet domain names

Just a hypothetical question. Supposing someone could register a domain name like MacDonald.com.sg, and MacDonald writes a polite letter to ask him not to use it, change it, does he need to comply? This is only a hypothetical situation. It can apply to any domain name. Or would MacDonald call the owner of such a domain name and negotiate to buy it over as a business transaction? If I am not mistaken, the trademark of MacDonald, or any other brand name, is a different matter from a domain name. And every country can have their own MacDonald.com.xx. So MacDonald would either have to register it first or have to buy it over from the first registered owner? Anyone can fill in on this?

Myth 224 - Our land is limited! Property prices must go up!

Everyone is spouting this nonsense daily as if it is a gospel truth. There is limited land, we are land scarce, so property prices can only go up. The supply will never meet the demands. Here is the fallacy or root of this fallacy. Who says we don’t have enough land? Or why is there not enough land? Land was plentiful at one time. The migrants just go around and build their little attap or zinc roof houses anywhere, on any piece of empty land they could find. Our population then was a few hundred thousand and increasing gradually. At 2 million or 3 million, land is not an issue. It is when we keep piling up the numbers, inviting more and more people here that land become scarce. We create our own problem. We make our land scarce. We will have plenty of land once more if people start to run away from this land. Or we can stop the inflow and reduce the population. But economic laws and principles will be against any reduction. It means recession and depression. No growth is bad. So we must have growth and growth and growth. This unending growth is good for us. Same as for the whole world. Keep producing more people and more people. Go forth and multiply. Where will it end if growth is unceasing, unending? Is our limited land a myth or a conjure reality? We have changed from land abundance to land scarce. That is clever from the economics of growth. If Australia will to blindly follow this economic principle of growth, it too will run out of land in a matter of time. The whole world will run out of land. But it does not have to. The pain is self inflicted. We don't have to go down this road. It's final destiny is self destruct. We need to know our limitations and stop while we can. So is the world. Population growth, economic growth, high consumption, high destruction to environment, depletion of resources and food supply, climate warming etc etc etc. All for incessant growth.

Be prepared for the invasion of the Dark Side

They are already here and in a big way. They turn Singapore into their turf like their home countries. The latest report of three Taiwanese being arrested, jailed and to be caned for loan shark activities is only a glimpse of what have yet to be uncovered. Now we can understand why the loan sharks here are fearless and would have no qualms burning and locking up their victims' residents. They play the game they know best in their lawless societies and think that they can do the same here. According to a govt statement, three Taiwanese citizens were given 7 to 24-month prison sentences after being convicted of loan shark harassment. 'Two of the defendants, identified as Su Wei Ying and Wu Wei Chun in the Singapore Police Force statement, were also to receive "15 strokes of the cane" for their offenses. Su, 28, and Wu, 24, were both convicted of seven charges of loan shark harassment in violation of Singapore's Moneylenders Act and sentenced to 24 months and 21 months in jail, respectively, in addition to the caning.' Source CNA. And their Trade Representative is showing concern that they are being caned. Why should he when the Taiwanese broke our law, got a fair trial, and were punished like any Singaporeans would have been. There was no discrimination or biases? Did he forget that Singapore is not Taiwan? Or did he think that Taiwanese should be dealt with more leniently than the locals? Perhaps in Taiwan they could get away with their crimes with a call from the Dark Side. The loan sharks flouting our laws and becoming more adventurous and defiance is only an early sign of more to come. If we cannot deal with this problem and clean up our city, there would be no way to put a blockage to stamp the flood of Dark Side activities that normally coexist with casinos. In many notorious countries, including those that are claimed to be operating under the rule of law and the respectability of law, it is common that the govt officials were in the pay lists of the mafia and with the mafia calling the shot. We have to be prepared to stamp this tide and stay on the bright side. The Dark Side is sexy and inviting and tempting.

Temasek Review versus Temasek Review

What is this tussle all about? A case of copy rights, a business wrangle, a political issue or what? One is an internet forum and another a corporate newsletter. Can they share the same name, or does one Temasek Review interferes with another Temasek Review? The target audience or readers are obviously different. What if one Temasek Review is registered internationally? Would it make any difference? Where is the boundary in cyberspace? I hope mysingaporenews is not being used by some other corporations. I have heard of mypaper and your news so far. Will I be looking forward to some nasty surprises from a conflicting claim? And I think redbeanforum is quite safe. At least it has no grand labels attached to it. The closest similarities are tomatoes, apples and oranges and perhaps peanuts. I hope Temasek Review may be able to squeeze some juice from it's name. Or would it be the other way round? Would the word 'pap smear' be banned?

Nobel War Prize

Ever since Obama received his Nobel Peace Prize he has been engaged in the same wars as his predecessor. He added a feather to his cap by adding 300,000 more troops to Afghanistan. And they are fighting another rag tag militia like the Vietcongs, without planes, without tanks, without sophisticated satellites and smart bombs. No Rambos or Arnie too. And the American commanders are asking for more fighting men as they can’t deal with the problem. But that is not enough for Obama. He wanted to start another war with the North Koreans by conducting provocative exercises at their doorstep. And that is still not enough. He wanted to use Asean as an excuse to start a war with the China. It is time that the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to him be renamed the Nobel War Prize. If not, they need to switch the definitions for peace and war.

What a pity, No Liverpool

Peter Lim's serious and business approach to acquire Liverpool Football Club failed. They did not want his money even when he was willing to pay 60 million pounds more than the successful contender. So, was it a business decision or political decision? Was there more that we do not know? There is no corruption in fine English gentlemen. So what went wrong? Never mind. But it is a pity that he failed in his bid. Otherwise we will become famous as a football nation. Not they we can kick football, but owning a champion English football club will do the trick. Our football fans would have the chance to cheer themselves crazy every time Liverpool plays. We will fly Liverpool flags everywhere, sing Liverpool's anthem and wear Liverpool colours. Just hope they did not get carried away and change our National flag and national anthem as well. They will be prouder to call themselves Liverpudlians than Singaporeans. Whatever, a football club in big debt cannot be a profitable business except for some bought fame. I think it is good riddance that Peter Lim did not get to buy it. Why throw good money after bad money or money for a bunch of hooligans? Some will disagree and feel that this is closest to our dream of being in the World Cup. The possibility of our Liverpool team playing as our national team can be arranged, with some money in the right place. Maybe someone else has a bigger dream to make this come true.

The most enlighten article on North Korea

Doug Bandow, a Senior Fellow at the Cato Institute, I dunno where it is, has his article published in the ST today. Let me quote some of his ’intellectual’ comments about North Korea and Kim Jong Il. ‘The so called Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, the world’s first “communist monarchy”, poses no threat to America.’ Clap, clap, clap. This is ingenius observation. ‘Its economy is a wreck. Its military equips undertrained and malnourished soldiers with ancient equipment. One American aircraft carrier has more firepower than the entire North Korean military.’ This must be based on objective academic observation and empirical data. Obviously he did not see the recent parade and the well fed, well uniformed and well armed North Korean soldiers. The US should just march in like they did in Iraq and see what happens. ‘…Dear Leader Kim Jong Il is evil but not stupid. He knows that the US could wipe his nation off the map. He wants his virgins in this life, not the next, and would not waste his time attempting to pass power to his son if he planned self immolation in a pyre of fire.’ Kim is evil? How many people has he killed compared to Bush and Obama? And he wants virgins. Kim must have confided in him privately. My god, this is an academic piece of art! ‘The South’s forces are better trained and its equipment is more capable; Seoul has a much large army reserve and military industrial base. It has twice the population and upwards of 40 times the gross domestic product of the North. Moreover, neither China nor Russia, the North’s traditional allies, would support it in another war.’ Obviously this joker did not remember what happened during the Korean War. Let me remind him that the North nearly drove the South Korean army into the sea. Only the American intervention saved the South from a complete annihilation. And his simpleton’s conclusion that China and Russia would not come to the North’s aid in another war is as good as saying there is no Christmas comes December. After reading till this part, I wonder what kind of academic integrity there is in this article. This looks like a thrash written by a bigoted secondary school boy. I couldn’t bear to read further for fear of being impressed by his silliness.

How rich are Singaporeans?

A recent survey claimed that Singaporeans are the 4th richest in the world with net worth of US$336k each or something like that. So how to compare this money with someone with only $30k to see who is richer materially? Of course the Singaporeans have more money, big and strong Singapore currency. The deception is only beginning. Think of how hard it is to save $100k and how fast it slips through our fingers. It may take someone 5 to 10 years to save up $100k but his decision to buy that car will instantly burn every cent away. Ok, Ok, he does not need to buy a car. He can take public transport or buy a bicycle to promote green life. And a young couple saving their first $150k only to see it vanishes when they sign on the dotted line to buy that little flat, and another 30 years to slog to pay up everything. Yes, they need not have to buy. Just rent or stay with the mummy and daddy. Young couples who are able to save this kind of money cannot buy HDB flats, very likely earning more than $10k pm. It is the govt’s ruling. Then the retiree with his $200k savings! They may feel happy and secure to put such a sum of money away for their old age. However, one admission into a hospital for a serious illness, gosh, not a single cent left, nothing left for his remaining years. Are we really that rich and well off? What is the purchasing power of our strong dollar at home? A Singaporean with $50k could barely pay for his Korean car. A Singaporean with a family income of $1k-$2k may need financial help to make ends meet. So we are rich. A major economic crisis will bankrupt a large portion of the population when so many people are indebt of $500k or more. We are exposing our people to such a high and unnecessary risk which we believe will not happen. We have forgotten what happened in late 1990s. Don't they have nightmares of a crash and living in debt, unable to pay their big loans?

Chia Thye Poh deserves a Nobel Peace Prize

He is the longest surviving political prisoner in modern history, serving more years than Nelson Mandela. He was imprisoned without trial for 23 years and under house arrest for another 9 years, giving a total of 32 years in detention. Mandela served 27 years in all. Wikipedia describes Chia Thye Poh as a prisoner of conscience, a person who stood firm on his belief without wavering and sacrificing his freedom and the best part of his life. If any one deserves a Nobel Peace Prize, it must be Chia Thye Poh. The politicians or political parties should nominate him as a candidate for next year’s award. He might be a communist, though he has never admitted to be one. But communist or no communist is no longer an issue with the award given to the first communist in China in Liu Xiaobo. And if the Nobel Prize committee does not know where Singapore is, it will be an advantage by telling them that Singapore is part of China. It will give the committee more reasons to give the award to Chia Thye Poh, ‘to spite China again’. And we can celebrate our own Nobel Peace Prize winner, our very own son.