Yes, we are back!

Hi guys and gals, we are back as before. Things are in disarray at the moment and I will need to reorganise them a bit, with transferring some recent posts back from redbeanforum, to be in better shape. Cheers.

How to locate mysingaporenews in Asian Correspondent

Hi guys, You will need to click onto the correspondents list in Asian Correspondents Homepage, on the top right hand corner. All the correspondents are listed there. There is a scrollbar below and I am at number 17. That's the start. See you.

First major step in inclusiveness

The youngest son of JBJ, the embittered politician who had lost practically every material thing that he owned for being in the opposition party, for taking on LKY and the PAP practically single handed, has been appointed to one of the most important govt organisation, the Public Service Commission. Such an appointment was unthinkable a few years back. And it takes a very open minded man like Eddie Teo, Chairman of PSC, to welcome him into the fold. The PSC is the main body that charts and plans the recruitment and career development of top civil servants. Philip Jeyaretnam is in a way now involved the govt machinery and working with the govt for the country. It is better to have him on the right side than to see him joining his brother, Kenneth, in opposition politics. The appointment does not guarantee that he would not go into opposition politics, but is a big declaration that the govt is willing to embrace talents from the other side. It is also a clear message that the history of the fathers will not affect adversely the fortunes of their children. This is modern Singapore, there is rule of law, there is inclusiveness and a place for all who is willing to contribute to the country. In dynastic China, once a member of a family fell from grace, the whole family would be banished together to the frontier. This is not the case in 21st Century Singapore. Our frontiers are only as far as Tuas or one of the islands a few minutes of boat rides away. We are an inclusive country.

The most coveted position in corporate Singapore

No, not the Presidency! No, not the SM or MM. The most coveted and prized possession in the market is Directorship to the Board of Directors of public companies. Many are known to grab as many as they could or available. The number is never enough. Some may have work and other commitments up to their noses, have no time for family and mistresses, but will still find time to accept the appointments of directorship. The benefits of being a director are obvious, money, status and rubbing shoulders with corporate Singapore. Is there any downside to such a lucrative appointment? So far don’t seem to have any, though legally there are responsibilities, heavy responsibilities. For any neglect or negligent in exercising the power of directorship against frauds and wrongdoings would mean the company losing money, and shareholders too. But have no fear. When things are not looking good, quickly submit a resignation letter and go for a holiday. Then start to scout for more new directorships. And if one is highly talented, there is no shortage of offers. The more talented one is the better the offers. And yes, please do not apply. Appointments are by invitations only.

From proactive to reactive

This seems to be the picture of HDB’s housing policy today. In the past we pride ourselves in being proactive, plan ahead, anticipate problems before they happen. Now it is reacting and reacting, and look and see and then react again. And HDB is proud to say that it reacted swiftly to the changes in demand for public housing and raised its supply from 6,000 flats to 13,500 flats this year. This is a whooping 125% off the mark. And, ‘If the take up of BTO flats remains strong, we will continue to push out more flats under the BTO next year – at least one (project) every month if necessary,’ said Mah. It also said this, “‘What actually happens a few years down the road is unknown. Also, demand is not constant – it varies from year to year, depending on economic and other factors, ‘he told Parliament.” True, true, anything that is more than two days is unknown. Even the next hour is unknown. No need to forecast, no need to plan ahead, no data of population growth to work with, don’t know how many foreigners coming in etc etc. It is so difficult to plan ahead. Let’s take the realistic and practical approach. When there is a demand, then build. Ya Koon can make half boiled eggs in 5 minutes or even 4 minutes on demand.

Q and A in Parliament

The Parlaiment sat yesterday and questions were raised on public housing and answers were given. The PSLE has just concluded and the results will be out this Thursday. Comparing the two, the students got to spot questions and try to prepare answers that will match the questions if they were asked. Sometimes the questions were guessed correctly, sometimes not. And the prepared answers may be good but only the examiner will have the final say. It is quite tough for the students really. In Parliament, things are much easier. The questions are known in advance and the answers prepared accordingly by the best brains. The answers will be perfect. No need any examiner to mark. Even if there is any marking, the scores will be a perfect 100. Questioners completely satisfied and the people providing the answers perfectly happy for a job well done. Next question please.

The writings on the walls

The graffitis are getting bigger and more colourful. They are painted on lift doors, doors of HDB flats, on windows, on staircases. They are the works of loan shark runners. Despite quite a few have been arrested the number of reported cases of loan shark harassment has gone up to 13,771 for Jan to Sep , exceeding the 11.789 cases reported for the whole of last year. What are the loan shark graffitis saying? The message is simple. This is loan shark country. They are the boss. Now the men in blue are up in arms to deal with them seriously. New laws are being passed with stiffer penalties, heavier fines and caning for the runners, and now also the masterminds and the big guys. The question is whether the new punishments are enough to deter loan shark activities which are criminal in nature? Maybe the MHA can take a leaf from SGX on how to solve irritating problems. The exchange is very disturbed by the need to buy back shares which investors/remisiers sold by mistake or carelessness. These are not crimes but silly mistakes. The number of shares or values maybe very small, tens of dollars or a couple of hundreds of dollars. The penalty for the first unsuccessful attempt to buy back is $1000 fine or 5% of the contract value whichever is higher. And the penalties will go up with each day of delay in buying back the shares. After due date +3, the penalty is $5000 per day until the shares are bought back. And there will be disciplinary actions as well. The penalties are so effective that the remisiers and small investors are trembling in fear of making such mistakes. This is what is called effectiveness. Would the loan sharks and their runners tremble in fear with the new laws and penalties? We will have to wait for the harassment stats to tell the story.

Mysingaporenews joining Asian Correspondent

Announcement - We are going international Hi everyone, I have accepted an invitation from the Asian Correspondent to be one of their correspondents. There will be some minor changes to the format of presentation when the switch takes place either this week or next. The important thing is that the URL to mysingaporenews will not be changed and you can still log on to the blog as before. Also very important is that the style and content and the way I write will still be the same. I have full independence in posting in the same way as before. Not subject to any editorial policy or approval. The main advantage of this cooperation is that we will be riding on a bigger platform and gaining more readership and exposure. Please continue to enjoy and post as before. Cheers.

A new enlightenment has dawned on Singapore

Linguistic skill is not directly linked to intelligence. Singaporeans are finally enlightened to this fact. A Mrs Goh Su San wrote to the ST forum to salute LKY for telling it to the people. This Mrs Goh narrated the anguish and pain she and her family had to go through when their two sons fared badly in the Chinese Language in schools and they had to uproot from Singapore to settle in a foreign land. And loo and behold, their two sons blossomed and are now professionals in their chosen fields. The victims of language policies are not confined to just the second language, in particular Chinese Language. In the days of Senior Cambridge Examination, a student could have a string of As. But if he failed the English Language, he was a goner. No place in A level. And for those who did not pass GP in A Level, no place in the university. Failing the English Language was as good as failing the whole examination. How many brilliant students were lost through this language policy? It is history now. On the other hand, a student with a credit in English and all the donkeys and elephants could be admitted to the university. And many ended up as highly acclaimed intellectuals because to their university degrees and the command of the English Language, while the failures in the English Language could at best try their luck in business or else ended up in some clerical jobs or as mechanics. But it is better late than never that we are enlightened to this great truth today. With this great discovery, we could be entering an age of renaissance. Thank god, we are wiser now.

Celebrating Singaporeans - Dr Lim Hock Siew

Stories of the victors and the vanquished The APEC Meeting was a scintillating example of what life can be for the victors of a political contest, a gathering of fine wine, fine people and fine company. Everything is so beautiful and glamorous for the victors. Last night I viewed the video of Dr Lim Hock Siew who told his story of the vanquished. He was detained under the ISA for nearly 20 years. His was a life moving from one dungeon to another. He spoke of the miserable conditions that he went through for being a political prisoner on the losing end. He spent all those years in darkness, no friends, no niceties, no finer things in life. He could have got out much earlier if only he was willing to repent, to confess, to say something like quitting politics or things like that. He had the choice, if he was willing to go with the tide. He did not, chose not. He stood by his principles, beliefs and ideals. He would not be beaten or compromised on his ideals. He was no criminal but a contestant in a political game for power, or for the right to govern a country. In Africa, the dark continent, they made people like him into President and honoured with the Noble Peace Prize. In paradise, he is history, forgotten and lost among the debris. Or is he part of our history? I did not read the MIW book and do not know if his name was mentioned. If it was, then he is part of the new history. If not, he will have to wait for a new history to be written. His parting shot in the video was about man and ideals. Man without ideals is hollow. He paid a very heavy price to live his ideals, 20 years of his prime life under detention.

Supply and demand of HDB flats to be raised in Parliament

Several MPs will be raising questions on the supply and demand of HDB flats in Parliament. And their key concerns are young couples, first timers being forced out of the public housing markets. Some have tried several times and had to give up when their salaries exceeded the $8k ceiling and forced to buy private flats that are beyond their reach or stretching their incomes. And there is also the issue of profits which Chiam See Tong wants to know, and what is meant by affordability. First question that came to mind is why is it necessary to raise such questions in Parliament when Mah Bow Tan and the HDB had painstakingly explained that the problem of shortages in public housing was only a perceived problems, or due to the choosiness of the applicants? Data were given to prove beyond any doubt that there are enough public flats to meet the demand, and first timers, more than 90% will get their flats in the first try or at most second try. And many media professionals also chipped in to confirm with their brilliant articles that there is no real public housing problem. Would the questions to be raised in Parliament superfluous or a waste of time? Why raised when there is no problem, or is it that the MPs do not agree with the public explanations, that there is a real problem, not simply perceived and to be swept under the carpet? Why, when Chok Tong had also came out to assure the people that the govt would ensure that the flats would be there and affordable? The other question is, what do the MPs expect to achieve? To get a few explanations from Mah Bow Tan and close the case, duty done for speaking out in Parliament? Would it be more meaningful and constructive for the MPs to not just raise questions but come out with ALTERNATIVES of what they want the minister and HDB to do? Wasn't it a common reply that if anyone is not happy they should come out and offer a better solution, not such criticise the policies? I would like to hear the MPs saying why they are unhappy, and what alternative solutions they are proposing instead of simply asking questions. Tell Mah Bow Tan what they want done, that they don't agree with the HDB policy of selling at market price subsidy, that public housing is for the people, the core pillar of our country, to keep the people housed and rooted here. It is not a commercial enterprise to make huge profits and should not be one. Without a good and decent home, what is there to defend this country for? How would people living in expensive mickey mouse flats and shoe boxes feel about the affluence around them, that they are a part of the affluence and well being? The bulk of the country's population are housed in public flats. When these are no longer affordable and no longer comfortable, according to the hardlanders definitions, not defined by people who do not live in them, what is there to hold them to this piece of rock and call it home? Would the raising of this issue in Parliament just another of those question and answer sessions and nothing comes out of it?

Blogging - Severing the shackles of dependency

The MOH has taken a big step into how it disseminates information through its blog. In a way it has not only by passed the tedious and slow process of depending on the old media to inform the consumers, it has taken full advantage of what new media can do for the ministry, freedom, speed, efficiency and in full control of what they want to say. No need to brief reporters on what to write, no need to vet for accuracy, no need to wait for the editor's approval, no need to depend on the printing schedule of the media and no fear of no space available for their articles. They can say all they want to say at and when they want it. By breaking free and doing it on its own, and with other ministries probably following suit, this mode of communication will eventually become more widespread and even a norm. In the not too distant past, some professional media personalities have been scornful about the new media, questioning their accuracy and integrity. The tune has changed and I have heard some saying that it is the way to go forward. And people can be accountable and responsible for what they posted, with a name behind the article instead of a faceless directive from an organisation. The move into new media is gaining momentum, though still in a small way.

New corporate governance council in the making

I have kept this thread alive in redbeanforum since March 2007. I have written to a couple of organisations on the issues of corporate governance and directorship. Few days back, Ho Kwon Ping wrote a long article about what was going on in the Board of companies. Today we are hearing the MAS talking about setting up a body to look into raising the standard of corporate governance. Is this an exercise that is more in form or substance? What had happened in the past few years had seen many investors losing their piles in the stock market with dubious companies and dealings and fraudulent accounting. And where does the fault lie? It is, in a way, something like corporate America. The practice of 'I scratch your back you scratch mine' is only a small fraction of a system going out of control. It all boils down to lack accountability and lack of clout. From the board of directors, top management, auditors, financial analysts and banking advisors, everyone is being paid a fee to monitor and be watchdogs to corporate faults. Some participated in the frauds, some just simply resigned when something smelly popped up. No one is responsible for anything or hardly anyone was taken to task for the failures or frauds. What is needed is not only a revamp of the whole corporate governance formula, but a need to pin responsibilities on the shoulders of those carry it and being paid for it. The SGX has come out with draconian rules and fines for simple and often innocent mistakes made by equally blur investors or careless remisiers. Such an approach should be adopted in corporate governance and corporate frauds when the consequences are much grave. Make everyone who is paid to do a job be accountable. Heavy fines is a way. Resigning and washing their hands cannot be allowed. Accepting the payment must come with accepting the punishment for a job not properly done. Rip Van Winkles cannot go on sleeping and get away with it. People who don't have the time to be execute their management, advisory or watchdog's role should not take on the job. Would something like this happen with the setting up of a new corporate governance council?

Good news to HDB owners

The tax department has confirmed that the annual value(AV) of their flats have gone up because the values of the flats have gone up and also, these flats can now fetch higher rentals. And the increases were very small given the huge increases in the resale prices of flats. Compare to increases in values of tens or hundreds of thousands, a hundred dollar increase is chicken feat really. I am sure all flat owners would not mind paying more taxes if their flats can be sold for a million or two. And good news for the smaller flat owners. They don't have to pay for the higher property tax. There is a one year rebate! Only the bigger flats need to pay, and the bigger the flats, the bigger the tax increases except for bigger executive flats. But the statisticians will have reasons to be argumentative when they look at the percentages of increases. A 3 rm flat will have to pay $72 more from $2.17. Now how many hundred percent increase is that? Every $2.17 is 100%. The number is too big for my calculator. A ball park number is like 3,600% increase! 4 rm flat will pay $97 more from $46.96. This is easily 200%! 5rm and executive flats have smaller increases of about 100%. I am not going to split hairs on these increases and why the smaller and obviously poorer flat owners should be hit with that kind of percentage increases. What I am looking at is that the majority of HDB flat owners are living in their own flats, their homes, not for letting and also there are many rules prohibiting them from renting their flats. The AV can shoot to the sky, but many HDB flat owners cannot benefit from them. No renting, cannot rent. Only those who need the money or those who have many properties can benefit from the high AVs. Why lump all HDB owners into the same category and make them pay higher taxes when the benefits of high AV is academic and perceived, unreal? For those who are waiting for the flats to hit $1m, no problem. Let the AV go higher. When the $1m target is rich, just sell and get out of the property ownership trap. Oops, 99 year property leasing trap to some.

Asian deference to power and authority

When I saw Obama bowing to the Emperor of Japan, I was kind of, 'What the hell is he doing?' Didn't he learnt from the same mistake when he bowed to the Saudi King? Didn't his advisors gave him a debriefing that being the President of the USA, he is first among all equals. No king or president is above him or on par with him. But he had to do it again. Many Asians would not notice the significance of that bow. But the Americans are incensed. Hey, the days of kings, dukes and princes are over. The concept of royalties or people who are more equal than others by birth is no longer acceptable, especially in republics, democracies and socialist/communist countries. The days of royalties will be a thing of the past in a matter time. However there are still Asians who are disturbed by the outburst of Americans at Obama. They find it perfectly respectful for a president to bow to a king. I think if the Queen of England or Prince Charles were to visit Singapore, many Singaporeans will willing and instinctively bow to them. For the commoners, maybe it is more a polite way to greet someone who is richer and more powerful than them. After all they are royalties, queens are beautiful, kings are clever and princes are charming. It is all written in the books of fairy tales and fables. In reality, many of these royalties can be quite idiotic or simply nasty creeps. Time has changed, and with universal suffrage, universal education, equality, the mindset of fairy tales should be cleansed in the education system. What is a king or prince if not of the inherited wealth and glory?

3 admissions of mistakes in a day - LKY

This is simply unbelieveable. For more than 45 years in power, there was no mistake. The record was a clean sheet of paper. Yesterday I heard it in the news that LKY admitted he made a mistake in the bilingual policy. Quite shocking news really. Today, reading the media reports, he actually admitted making 3 mistakes in a single day. Mistake number One, teaching the wrong way 'by insisting on ting xie(listening), moxie (dictation).' I will put it as spelling and dictation. Ting xie ie listening and writing, is spelling. Mistake number Two, 'insisting on bilingualism in the early years.' And mistake number Three, 'equating intelligence to language ability.'PS. Moxie is not dictation but writing from memory. Having realised his mistakes, he made it his lifetime pursuit to make it right. And he 'wasn't helped by the ministry officials, one English speaking, one Chinese speaking.' So he took on the task of thinking, on how to overcome this situation. He is no educationist, and he is also a very busy man. He thought through the problems and came out with more solutions. Finally he is putting them right. I can't imagine the consequences if he is not around to think through all the problems for Singaporeans. Why are there no other thinkers to complement this thinker in our country? Our country cannot depend on just one thinker to solve all our problems. The universities must start a course on thinking national issues and solving national problems.

Japan.NetPrice

Hi everyone. Japan Netprice is placing an advertisement on this blog. The advert is on the top right hand corner. Japan Netprice is selling a long list of Japanese products on the net. You may enter its sales site by clicking on the advert. Disclaimer: Please note that any transaction between Japan Netprice and the buyer is on a caveat emptor basis. Mysingaporenews/redbean is only providing an advertising service and will not bear any responsibility for any disputes or claims arising from the sales transactions.

Geithner invites bloggers

NY Times: From Treasury, an Invitation to Financial Bloggers The Treasury Department opened its doors to economic bloggers this month, and the meeting was productive in at least one respect: as John Jansen of the blog Across the Curve concluded, “After meeting them, I feel I cannot refer to them as Timothy Geithner and his minions” anymore. Mr. Geithner, the Treasury secretary, was among the senior officials who talked with bloggers at an outreach session on Nov. 2. The two-hour round table was held on background, meaning that the bloggers could describe the sessions, but not attribute quotes to specific officials. Lengthy posts about financial system reforms — and the bloggers’ disagreements with the Treasury’s strategies — ensued. New-media scribes have gradually made their way inside most governmental institutions over the years, but the meeting was the first for bloggers at the Treasury. Tyler Cowen, an economics professor at George Mason University who has written at the Marginal Revolution blog for six years, said it was the first time he had heard from any Treasury official. The meeting “shows that the Obama administration is working very hard on outreach to a lot of different media sources,” he said. The Treasury invited about 20 bloggers. Eight attended — at their own expense — including some ardent critics of the department. Michael J. Panzner, who writes the Financial Armageddon blog, said the invitation “was totally out of the blue.” Andrew Williams, a spokesman for the Treasury who assembled the event, said that Mr. Geithner had “long valued the blogosphere” and mentioned that during Mr. Geithner’s tenure as the president of the New York Federal Reserve Bank, he had requested a daily compendium of relevant blog posts. Another reason for the outreach, Mr. Williams said, is that the blogs are influential, especially because they are read by reporters at more traditional outlets. For the Treasury officials, it was a break from the ordinary, as well. “I think we were much better informed than the groups they’re used to talking to,” Mr. Cowen said, citing politicians who visit and “ask for the impossible.” Mr. Cowen, also a regular contributor to the Sunday Business section of The New York Times, said that one of the senior officials remarked that the bloggers were a “welcome change of pace.” Some of the bloggers were acutely aware of the effects of being welcomed inside “the brain trust,” as Steve Randy Waldman put it on the blog Interfluidity. “The mere invitation made me more favorably disposed to policy makers,” he wrote in his summary of the event, even though he abstained from eating any of the cookies at the meeting, “on principle.” The above article was posted in www.singaporeanskeptic.blogspot.com

A post from an Australian pharmacist

I received this in my email. The author has provided his contacts and if in doubt you make check up with him. I am no medical doctor and is in no position to confirm the validity of the below post. Swine Flu Vaccination - Poison ? ? ? - From an Angry Australian Pharmacist. Sent: Tuesday, October 13, 2009 9:34 AM "Guys, I'm Emailing you because I'm bloody scared about something. I created my Facebook group for fun, and to use it to market my businesses to people. What I'm doing now totally kills my ability to do that, but I don't care. This is important. I'm a qualified pharmacist. I've been researching the swine flu vaccine that our government has bought for us (using our money, by the way) and its DANGEROUS. Its easily a hundred times more dangerous than the swine flu itself, Imo. Something that freaked me out is that several swine flu vaccine manufacturers have asked governments to give them an exemption from lawsuits, in case the vaccine caused harm in people. If you made a vaccine that you knew worked, then why would you need a legal exemption in case it hurt people? Massive warning sign. They don't believe its safe. The swine flu itself has killed about 2/3000 people total. The regular flu kills 40 000 plus per year ? So why are we freaking out about swine flu, and not normal flu? Does that make sense? No. If the regular flu kills 40 000 plus per year, and the swine flu only killed 2/3 000 ? Then why are governments buying it in advance, giving it to us for free, and giving drug manufacturers immunity to legal cases against them? Does that make sense? No. The swine flu vaccine contains 2 horribly dangerous compounds ? One is called thimerosol. It is made 50% of mercury. It binds to receptors in your brain, and basically causes brain damage. Is it smart to be injected with thimerosol, and get brain damage, dropping 10 IQ points and going dumb, in order to avoid getting a flu that kills 95% less people than regular flu? No. The other horrible ingredient is called squalene. Squalene accidentally tricks your immune system into killing your own cells, which creates autoimmune diseases like asthma, multiple scelerosis, diabetes, and a bunch of diseases that we don't have a name for yet (because squalene hasnt been used for that long, and we have little data on its effects) ? Is is smart to inject yourself with that stuff, in order to avoid a relatively mild flu, like the swine flu? No. If you're a pregnant mother about to take Panvax, ask yourself this ? Why would you take Panvax, when it contains Neomycin and Polymyxin B Sulfate ? Both of which exhibit positive risk to unborn children ? So as to avoid what? A mild flu, that kills 95% fewer people than the regular flu? Look, I'm a funny guy. Yeah, I make good Facebook groups. People join them by the thousands, and laugh. But I'm also a qualified pharmacist. I scored in the top 0.1% of my state in school. I'm expert at critical analysis of drugs and their effects on humans. And let me be blunt ? If someone came up to me with a syringe full of swine flu vaccine, or came near my family with one ? I would take the needle off them and poke them with it myself ? Followed by several very hard punches. This stuff is poison. Don't take it. Don't let your friends take it. Don't let your family take it. If some idiot in a lab coat asks you if you want it, ask them about thimerosol, squalene, and why the company making it wants legal exemption from being sued, and watch their face go into ?omg I'm being asked serious questions that I don't have the answer to? Mode. Anyway. I hope you're all well. Chat to you on Facebook sometime Sincerely, George Mamouzellos Bachelor of Pharmacy University of South Australia" Adrian Abbott | Regional Manager In the business of climate change P: +61 7 3230 8801 +61 7 3230 8801 M: 0458 355 853 Contact http://mc/compose?to=Adrian.Abbott@energetics.com.au http://www.energetics.com.au/

Myth 214 - The myth of saving Gaia

Save the world, save the forest, save the animals, cut down on energy consumption, reduce greenhouse gas, etc etc. These are the magical words of the new world, all crying for help to save the world from destruction by man. Who is the biggest destroyer of this world we live in? The economic formula of growth. High consumption + high construction + high production = High destruction of Gaia. The economic formula of growth is the most destructive force which man chose not to know. No country can afford to continue to chalk up high economic growth year after year without high consumption, high production and high construction, leading to the greater destruction of the earth. Can we be so blind? The world is being destroyed rapidly by the high growth developed countries. The less developed countries are paying the price for their own destruction by maintaining a green way of living How much energy and resources does adding a man into the population consumes? How much energy and resources does it take to build a car? How much energy and resources does it take to build a house of a flat? Imagine how destructive we are to increase our population, to scrap a usable car in good condition, to destroy a whole estate of flats and buildings only to rebuild, en bloc? And we tell our people to save silly plastic bags to save the world! How many plastic bags must one save to feed a man a year ,or to build a car that we scrap prematurely, or to pull down, en bloc, a whole estate? What the hell is going on?