Criminals in high places and high finance

HSBC was slammed with more than a billion in fines for money laundering. UBS too was fined as much for rigging Libor. And several other big banks too were caught for equally serious criminal acts. The American and European authorities are currently investigating several banks for similar financial crimes.

What is nauseating is that no individual was found guilty of any crimes. The criminals were the inanimate banks and institutions. And the fines paid were from the shareholders. The shareholders are paying the fines of these criminals in high places. Where is justice? People in high places can commit crimes and be freed from punishment? How then would they stop doing what they were doing when they know that they are untouchables?

The US is now looking into bringing a few of these criminals to court and make them pay for the crimes personally. Until this is done, until these criminals in high places are put behind bars, the banking and finance industry will be dominated and in the control of such criminals and getting paid obscenely, unchecked by anyone.

The banking and finance industry has been in the hands of rogues and robbers for too long. When would the long arms of the law reach them and put an end to their crimes?

What do fake degrees mean?

Many stories have come out from Australia where unqualified doctors were practicing and some even operated on their patients. Imagine taking drugs prescribed by quacks or operated by quacks! Could it happen here, in our renowned world class hospitals? Are there any quacks treating our sick and prescribing medicines which they know nothing about?

Then in the field of engineering, we are building many high rise flats. Any faked engineers or architects employed to build them? What can be the consequences should a high rise building collapse? Or our highways, bridges etc. Could they go down with the people and vehicles on them, onto people and properties below?

Fake degrees are not just about money, about deceit, cheating. It is about lives at stake. A fake professor lecturing in a university may not cause much harm except twisting the minds of the students. But fake professionals in many fields can be very deadly. No pray pray.

Low Thia Khiang the new Zhuge Liang 诸葛亮

The Palmer Affair has slowly subsided with no politicians being ended up on the wrong side of the stick. Nobody got sued. When it blew up, there was a lot of temptation for the opposition parties to strike while the iron is hot and went on a lashing exercise to extract the same damage from the PAP as it demanded of WP during the Yaw Shin Leong Affair. The temptation was great and it took great of restraint for any opposition politician not to push the dagger a bit deeper and give it a little twist.

What happened was like a non event. The party that was expected to be up in arms, the WP, took a very low profile. There was a kind of discipline imposed. Other Low Thia Khiang, the rest was as mum as the PAP side. And Low’s comment, which could be eagerly awaited and could drag him into a heated tit for tat open war on who was dirtier, was greeted with great relief, perhaps a little disappointment for those who have sharpened their knives for full combat.

Instead of more dirt being dug out for display, instead of more heated accusations and defending, nothing of that sort happened. There was a little praise coming from Low which gave no one any chance to rebut or to tear him and his party down. The WP did not go down as another unforgiving and vicious party. It was like a gentleman party, like Low Thia Khiang. Hey, everyone is nodding that that was a coup de grace, putting himself and his party above the mud. Great strategic thinking at work.

And the rest of the opposition parties took the cue and all refrained from stirring up more shit to embarrass and to draw flakes to themselves. Our political temperature and climate seem to have improved, with great humility, graciousness and generosity. Hope this will be reciprocated in the by election and the next GE, as the new norm of decency. It bodes well for all. Low Thia Khiang and his party deserve a praise. I think it must be hard on him for now bowing to pressure from his members to do the fifteen when others did the first. 人作初一我作十五。

The little flutter is growing

Ever since the illegal strike or industrial action of the Chinese drivers in SMRT, more of such incidents are starting to appear. The little crack on the wall is getting bigger.

The latest illegal strike by the Indian and some Chinese workers in a construction site in Yishun is quite similar in nature to the SMRT strike. It was a sit in and work stoppages. In this case the workers were owed salaries by the sub contractor, Sime Chong Construction. The main sub contractor is now working with Sime Chong to pay the workers. MOM is also informed and in the picture.

The question is, would these workers be jailed, charged and repatriated like the SMRT drivers?

Natcon vs natcon

The Govt has taken the initiative to start a national conversation with the people. This exercise is to engage, listen and talk with the people to find out their aspiration, what the people want for the future, the type of country and society that they can help to create for themselves and their children. It is a massive exercise involving a lot of resources and fundings.

The mission of this Natcon is defined by the Govt and the discussion would be confined to this objective. The participants are likely to be talking about an ideal, and anyone going off topic will be hauled back. The mission and agenda are all set. The participants in a way are also set, invited by the organizers. There is a feel good feeling as it is all about a dream, about the moon and the stars.

It is kind of like an academic exercise like students in institutions of learning, a tutorial that would end up with a paper at the end of the conversation. Maybe there will be prizes for the best participant or the best papers to be presented.

There is another natcon (I am using small letters) going on among the people. It is spontaneous, uncoordinated, unstructured. Anyone can participate and it is happening everywhere, anywhere. It is free, no resources are committed to such a conversation. One major difference is that the participants are people who have something to say and wanting to say. The topics are unlimited and undefined and mainly about the realities, about their life experiences and their grievances. They are talking about the now, the immediate problems they are facing. There will be emotions and pains and anger as the issues are not something airy and fairy, not something that may or may not happen in the future.

Between the two natcons, a guided Natcon and a spontaneous natcon, the Govt is likely to listen to the Natcon it initiated. It must be as it costs a lot of money to organize such an exercise. And the findings cannot be put to waste. Would the Govt listen to the other natcon that it has nothing to do with, a natcon coming from the hearts of the people, or urgent issues that the people wanted the Govt to act on?

What would likely happen is that the findings of the Natcon will be compiled and may even be discussed in Parliament as the people’s aspiration for the future. The people have spoken. And it could even be the basis for the PAP’s position in the next GE, telling the voters that it has discussed with the people and they will deliver what the people want.

As for the spontaneous natcon that is unstructured and messy, it is likely to be regarded as voices from the disgruntled, from the losers, voices from the lunatic fringe, and likely to be ignored. To the people, their natcon is real and needs immediate attention. To the Govt, it is the guided Natcon that matters.

Is there a meeting of the minds between the Govt and the people? Yes, the Govt has spoken to some of the selected people invited. And no, the Govt is not talking or listening to the other people who wanted the Govt to listen to their problems. Which natcon is important and relevant is subjective and depending on who one is.

How serious is the problem of fake degrees?

There are more than half a million PRs in the island plus many that have taken up citizenship. Assuming half of the PRs are FTs, ie professionals that are the equivalent of our PMETs, it means that there are easily 250k of them working here.

There have been complaints or rumours that are many FTs are here on fake degrees, unqualified or half qualified. There is no official statistics so far on the size of this problem and no one really knows how serious is this problem. What are the implications to the country if 10% of the FT qualifications are fakes? This does not take into account that many came from educational institutions where the quality/standard of education is sub par or even suspect.

The most obvious and painful problem is for such FTs to be employed at the expense of Sinkies, taking away Sinkies’ jobs. And many fakes could be the superiors of the Sinkies. And they are going to be paid more, to determine the fate of Sinkies and the performance of the organizations. Depending on the industries they are in, any mistake can be very serious and costly or deadly, eg in construction of buildings, housing and infrastructure, in medicine, in engineering, in food technology and science.

While this problem is festering and only passed around as rumours, not many seem to have surfaced and the cheats taken to task. Maybe it is all simply rumours and there is not much truth in it as the statistics said so. Maybe the numbers of offenders are not disclosed thus no one is panicking. Not seen, not heard, thus no problems.

How can such problems be tackled both at the organization and industry level and at the national level? Are there organizations that can check and verify the qualifications of FTs to minimize the problem, to give justice to Sinkies and the professions that hired them and the end products or services they rendered?

Temasek could end up as the biggest shareholder of Olam

Temasek owns 16.3% of Olam while Kewalram owns 20%. How is Temasek represented in the Olam Board and how much influence does it have with such a big share of the company relative to Kewalram? And Temasek could easily be the biggest shareholder of Olam after the bond issue. Kewalram, the mother company of Olam has said that it would take up its full entitlement of the bond/warrant issues. Temasek would take up its entitlement too, but also mop up everything that is not taken up by the market.

Kewalram would have to put up US$150m for the stake while Temasek’s stake is $120m. The whole issue is reportedly worth $1.25b. Theoretically it is possible for the balance, other than Kewalram’s stake, to fall onto Temasek’s lap or $1b worth of bond and warrants. That would be as good as Temasek owning anything more than Kewalram’s 20% stake. Shouldn’t this be a great opportunity for a cheap takeover of Olam and later sell it for a big profit? If it chooses to keep the company as a going concern, it can than appoint some Sinkies to manage the company as a private company. No need to privatise to be efficient and profitable.

The Sandy Hook School tragedy

The children died, shot many times by a young man with an assault rifle. The teachers also died, some bravely trying to save the children. The parents cried. The siblings and friends cried. The Americans in Newtown, Connecticut will never forget this dreadful day in their whole lives. Many dreams and happy relationships were savagely shattered in the most wicked way one can ever think of.

Could this tragedy be avoided? Could all the macho men who fought stubbornly to keep the rights to own firearms sleep well after Dec 14, 2012? The old wild, wild west of American history was a time of violence when law and order was difficult to maintain. Not that it is easier today, but when continuing with gun ownership the toll or tragedy could be that much more serious and widespread, is it time to rethink? Would Clint Eastwood still be the man that would shoot first and talk later still be role model of American manhood?

This is the sick ethos of the American society, that owning guns is a very respectable thing, the right to self defence, to face an aggressor squarely on the face and to an honourable face off. And shooting or going to war is an acceptable way to settle disputes.

In the wrong hands, the guns are very deadly and would show no mercy. Ask the Arabs in the Middle East, this sick American trigger happy behaviour had inflicted pains many times more than in Sandy Hook School, in bigger scale and with hundreds of thousands of unfortunate victims, young and old. And the children died, the innocents died, the olds died, and their families wept. Their cries of pain were never told in the American or western media. No one know or would understand, or would want to know or understand the pains the Americans are inflicting on the people of other countries, all because the Americans carry guns, big guns, very powerful guns, that the victims have no reply.

Would gun ownership be banned after this incident, or after many more similar ugly incidents that are going to happen, and many more children and teachers would have to die, and many parents and loved ones weeping their hearts out? Would the act of war, the belligerent policies of the Americans, be put to a stop for a world that is less violent, an American society that is safer for the children and the helpless at the mercy of crazy gunmen and crazy American politicians and soldiers?

Last week there was a lone man firing at kids. Tomorrow a crazy American Admiral could seize control of his fleet and fire at any country at his whims and fancy, drugged or insane, it is a hell that can break lose.

Laura Ong – The people are angry

In all my postings, one of my key principles is to avoid tarnishing anyone personally, and the least for indiscretion in their private lives. I avoided writing too much about the high profile X rated cases in the courts. I also schemed through briefly about the indiscretions of the two MPs except making some factual reports that were already in the media.

Many people have taken high moral grounds to dismiss these people in all manners and descriptions. Some had done it to score points, some with an agenda. Even the public had a great time humiliating, sneering and laughing at the people involved, as if they were all saints and angels. They were not merely giggling at the victims but enjoying every bit of it. You can see them and hear them everywhere.

I reluctantly dragged myself into this sordid affair as some called it, or more politely, improper conduct for one reason. The people are angry at the diatribes thrown at Laura Ong. It seems that it is all her fault, that she is the troublemaker, the bad one, and the other party is wholesome goodness and honourable.

How could people be so wrong and unjust to one party of an indiscretion between two consenting adults? How could one be dragged across the public square wearing a conical hat and another praised as good and respectable, full of integrity and full of sympathy and forgiveness?

I am not going to say too much about this. The commentaries in the media are more sordid than the affair itself, and the people berating them are worst. I am very proud of the bloggers in this blog who have not indulged in the same manner as the ruthless and unspeakable. Let the one who have not sinned be the first to cast the stone.

China’s stock markets are safe

While many countries have adopted the American model of financial system and stock market operations, China is still very conservative and guarded. It is very careful in how its stock markets and financial systems are operating and opening up gradually without exposing them to the high risks of American model markets.

Among the key features are no derivative tradings, no hedge funds, no computer or high frequency tradings. It even restricts the amount foreign funds are allowed to invest in Chinese stock markets. And it carefully chooses the type of foreign funds to invest in its markets, and preference is given to sovereign wealth funds and pension funds but NOT to hedge funds. Some may think that this will restrict its growth and the liquidity in its markets. But China is not the least worry and not in a hurry. It is not blindly greedy for foreign funds and willingly opening its legs widely to be screwed, or allowed the foreign funds a free hand to run circus and exploit/rob the innocent investors of their hard earned money. It must know that the foreign funds, particularly the hedge funds and computer/HFT operators are not there to do charity but to make money, plenty of money, to take advantage of the system, with no qualms or worries about ethics and moral goodness or the well being of the investors and the stock market.

The funds that are permitted to invest in Chinese markets are Qatar Investment Authority, Temasek Holdings, GIC, Norway’s Norges Bank and Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. Even then, the amount they could invest in China is restricted to about US$1b each. Qatar has a limit of US$5b. China is looking for long term investors and not speculators and gamblers and would not allow big funds to create havoc by controlling the market with their large war chests.

Some may be sneering that the Chinese markets are unsophisticated and will not grow at the speed of western modelled markets, but what is likely to happen is that the Chinese markets would still be around when the western modelled markets failed as a result of its casino nature, fraudulent systems and products. China must be very prudent and not to be conned by the big funds and their criminal practices like computer trading, HFT and derivatives to destroy its markets.

The days of western modelled markets are numbered and will fail disastrously.

Sluts and Slutwalk Singapore

When I called Singaporeans Sinkies, some got offended. I used this term for several reasons, sometimes negative, sometimes for convenience. It is a short two syllable word instead of the long and winding Singaporean. And often Sinkies should be called Sinkies just like some called them daft. Sinkies did not complain for being called daft but for being called Sinkies because Sinkies sound like sinking. Whatever, a rose is a rose by all names, and a piece of shit is shit no matter what you call it.

I came across this word Slutwalk in a new movement by a group of woman championing their rights to wear whatever they want, how sexily they want, and to party and drink like the men in the most fun loving places deep into the night. They are protesting that such dressing and behaviour are often branded as sluts by the male chauvinists, an invitation to be raped. So they are going to defy the chauvinists by doing what they want and showing their middle fingers to them.

Such brandishing of women’s rights is nothing different from women happily sharing dirty jokes with the men. Some did it happily even with strangers or people they knew only for a few days. To these women, it is all about being open, liberal and worldly, if not, being westernised or sophisticated. They think this is about having arrived and even mature and clever, to be able to engage the men in their saucy stories. Many men appreciate such openness in the women and always enjoy their great company.

Some ladies are more discreet and would only share with people in their close circles of friends. Letting go with strangers or people they hardly know is a no no. They are smart enough to know that the presumably merry men sharing the dirty jokes with them and flattering them could form very different opinions of them and may make unkind comments behind their backs.

I digress. The Slutwalk protagonists are very comfortable with the branding. I am not sure if they are comfortable and call themselves sluts. They must have welcomed all the spectators and guests to their events with words like welcome to the Slutwalk or Slut dinner or Slut party or something like that. But they are not sluts, definitely. It is just a choice of names they called themselves to gain attention.

So, should Sinkies be offended by the word Sinkie? If Sinkies can be just as proud as the woman for calling themselves Slutwalk or ‘Sluts’, then it should not be an issue. Be proud that you are a Sinkie and a Sinkie needs not be daft or sinking. Political parties may also adopt such eye catching and loud unforgettable names, like Prostitute Party or Pimp Party, as long as they are not prostitutes or pimps. It is very creative and going with the flow.

It is all in a name. Nothing much to it really.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms

The Western world is quite familiar with the Art of War as a book on military warfare. Thanks to the trainers who popularised this manual of warfare by applying the tactics and strategies in modern management practices. An equivalent and more powerful book, Romance of the Three Kingdoms, is less well known outside the Middle Kingdom but is stacked with many military strategies and tactics of psychological warfare.

In one of the stories, the famous strategist, Zhu Ge Liang, was pitted against the warlord Cao Cao. The game plan was about luring Cao Cao into a trap, allowing him to be victorious and became complacent. The finale was for Cao Cao to paint himself into a corner and defeating himself in a game of crafty deceit.

Zhu Ge Liang knew that Cao Cao had a weakness for women. Without disclosing this knowledge, he used it to plot Cao Cao’s embarrassing defeat by setting up one of his general, General Yao, with another woman in an improper affair. Of course this was leaked to Cao Cao who happily exposed the details of the relationship to the public.  Zhu Ge Liang’s Cukong Liu was greatly embarrassed and summarily dismissed General Yao who then left the state.

Tasting success, Cao Cao seized on the opportunity to embarrass Liu by ridiculing him, demanding that Liu tell the whole truth and be transparent, not to hide any material fact. Cao Cao’s ministers added fuel and fire, telling Liu’s people that Liu had let them down, and failed to carefully select his officers. They ran circus around Liu, accusing him of being inept in choosing his generals, lack of integrity and that Cao Cao’s camp was better in serving the people’s interest.

After a year, when things quiet down, when there was apparent peace under heaven, with Cao Cao smarting over his moral victory, Liu exposed Cao Cao’s affair to the world. What Cao Cao did was an exact replica of what Yao had done, the same affair with the wives of another officer in the same camp. Cao Cao was forced to face the same barrage of accusations and flaming and was helpless. Every word spoken by Cao Cao and his ministers were carefully recorded and read back to Cao Cao and his men. It was a taste of his own medicine. There were no buts, no running away from a similar and grave mistake. Cao Cao and his ministers who acted high and mighty, as the righteous ones, beyond reproach, had to swallow every word they said, heads bent low, some went into hiding. Cao Cao was defeated in his own game of moral superiority.

The Three Kingdom was a timeless classic, and the tactics and strategies have been thoroughly read and discussed and mastered by many modern military commanders and politicians. Some were able to use them so effectively in defeating their enemies through deceptions, schemes, plots and strategies that often caught the enemies totally unguarded and with their pants down. Zhu Ge Liang was a living legend of his time.

Art of RAR - A new series

Another series of rar art created by Mother Nature. Size up to 24in x 36in in oil or pigments.

SMRT driver bashing – The other untold story

Untold may not be the right word as the story was told many times over several months, but no one wants to hear them. This untold and embarrassing story is starting to reappear to shed light on the plight of the SMRT drivers. One was jailed, 29 repatriated and 5 charged in court. The story in the media so far was all about the trouble makers, the SMRT drivers. And they were duly punished with many Sinkies throwing more vitriol at them.

Desmond Kuek has conducted an internal investigation on how the strike came about and commented that it could be avoided if the management was more “sensitive, attentive and responsive” to the problems the workers had brought up. Disciplinary action would be taken against those who allowed the drivers’ grievance to escalate to become a work stoppage. The drivers would not have been charged, jailed, repatriated and lost their jobs. The strike would not have occurred to embarrass the govt and the trade union. Relations with the Chinese Govt would not have been affected.

Since his last comment that there were many problems in the organisation, a witch hunt could be next and many skeletons are likely to be dragged out of the cupboard. But most important of all, the truth shall prevail and the drivers would be seen in a different light, that they could be victims of mismanagement and neglect.

Shine the light and brighten up the dark patches and return justice to those that had been wronged. SMRT would no longer need to say we are sorry, it should not have happen, we will make sure it will not happen again. ‘We are sorry for the inconvenience caused’.

Punggol East - A scramble for the spoils?

I wrote about the congregation of the vultures awaiting the ageing lion to fall. Every vulture is hungry and wanting to have its share of the meal. Would there be a mad scramble for the carcass or would each take its turn for a bite of the morsel? If they do it in an orderly manner, each will have their fill and more could come their way. If they go on a mad rush, the dying lion could walk away to live another day.

Lina Chiam of SPP, Hazel Poa of NSP have spoken. They would not be engaged in the foray in Punggol East. They would wait their turn as it was a battle field of WP and SDA in the last election. This sets up a gentleman's agreement on the pecking order in the opposition camp for the rest to follow. Would the others abide by this protocol, or would they defy the existing order and behave like when fools rush in?

Some parties are taking an ambivalent position at the moment with reservation that they could jump into the fray. Some quarters are openly encouraging all the opposition parties, or some parties to move in, 3 corners or many corners fight is irrelevant. Their intent could be simply a genuine interest in wanting their perceived favoured party to have a go at this seat. For some, the intent is nothing to hide, to agitate the opposition parties to strangle themselves and deprive themselves from a good fight.

The memory of the last Presidential Election is still vivid in the minds of the electorate. Some are cursing at the missed opportunities for their chosen candidate. Some are cursing at the spoilers. Would there be spoilers in the making, for whatever queer or make belief justifications, that they must be in the ring to split the votes of the opposition?

In a straight fight like Hougang, the chances of victory against the ruling party has been proven to be very high. So, would Punggol East be another Hougang or another multi corner fight that makes the opposition parties look like a bunch of unthinking and selfish hyenas, and ended with nothing and losing their credibility, and be the cursed of the electorate?

Should there be a multi party contest, the electorate could still be the deciding factor. They could despatch the spoilers into shame and losing their deposits as well. The electorate are no longer easily conned and a spoiler will be seen as a spoiler and will not be getting much sympathy votes. They would be rudely dismissed and their intent exposed.

Punggol East is staged like the last fort, the last resistance. Should Punggol East fall this time, the writings will be on the wall. There will be no stopping of the tide and a tsunami may follow suit to clear up everything in the way.

Hougang was  a watershed. Punggol East could be the Waterloo. Would there be spoilers to throw shit in to muddy the water?

China and Japan gearing up to defend disputed islands

On the anniversary of the Nanking Massacre, China flew a civilian aircraft over the Diaoyu Islands snatched away by Japan after it was defeated in a war in 1894. This flight over Diaoyu is symbolic and a message to Japan that China is not going to let Japan to continue to think that it could seize Diaoyu Islands from China for good.

Japan reacted in the most aggressive manner by scrambling 8 F15s in a show of force to defend its claim on the islands. There was no engagement with the Chinese surveillance twin prob aircraft. China responded by making a statement that the aircraft was in Chinese airspace and had all the rights to be there. Japanese leaders were up in arms, revealing their cleverly concealed military past, each one raring to go to war. The nationalistic and militant voices in Japan are near hysteric.

China will only react in the same pitch and as robustly as the Japanese. China must have been preparing for this day to come, having tested Japanese intent that they would not return the islands without a fight. The stage is set for a military confrontation for the recapture of Diaoyu Islands. The national pride and interest of China, for losing a war and losing its territories will mean that China will go all the way to reclaim the islands. The next time China would also scramble their fighters to face the Japanese fighters.

Japan is equally adamant to keep the war loot. They think they are able to defeat the new China again and with the backing of the Americans. This is World War 3 and no laughing matter. The launching of the North Korean satellite is an affirmation that the North Koreans will present the Japanese and the Americans with a new factor to consider in case hostility breaks out. The dark horse is South Korea. Would it join the Japan/America alliance to take on China and North Korea, with the Russians in the background, or would it do a surprise by taking side with their northern brothers to avenge the years of colonization and humiliation and brutality under Japanese rule?

Whatever the position of the two Koreans, a war between China and Japan is inevitable unless the Japanese are willing to return Diaoyu Island to China. This is basic Chinese position, the reclamation of territories lost during the years of weaknesses and humiliation. They would take on the Japanese come what may.

PAP under siege

The opposition parties are hovering over Punggol East like vultures sensing the presence of a carcass for a good meal. It is not the case of a prize possession that belongs to the ruling party anymore. Thanks for the generosity of Michael Palmer, it is like a well timed Christmas present. But the ruling party is not going to give it away so easily. They know that the opposition parties are ready to snatch it away and it has to hold on to it tightly.

This is the state of the political game today. Gone were the days when the ruling party will strut around taking every loose seat available with great confidence. It was chionh all the way. The game has changed and it is a case of trying desperately to hang on to whatever it got. And the opposition parties are closing in for the kill every time a little gazelle breakaway from the herd. It is quite helpless. It will be taken away to fill the hunger of the hunters.

The ruling party is under siege and weakening in all fronts. There is no one in the party that could command the awe inspiring presence and leadership to win a single seat or even a GRC today. The last GE has exposed the weaknesses of the ruling party and the infallibility of every minister. Every one of them looks lame. And the last few batches of MPs were found to be wanting in many ways and many would not be able to hold on their own in a contest, without the GRC. Many were outright failures in the eyes of the people and many voters have regretted their decisions in the last GE. It is that bad.

The strength of the ruling part was in their pro people policies. These have done well for many years but strains are showing. Good policies are turning bad and unsustainable, like a big rock pushed up the mountain, the weight bearing gets heavier by the day and waiting to roll down, crushing everyone and everything below. Come to think of it, every policy is about to come tumbling down. Cannot think of any that is good or barely good today.

In the absence of good men and women, in the absence of good and pro people policies that are sustainable, what else is there for the ruling party to offer the people to keep them in power? This by election is only to confirm the hard truth that it is game over.

Maybe I am too pessimistic. Maybe the people are still strongly behind the ruling party. The joyous and buoyant celebration and the confidence shown in the last party conference told a different story. The party is on a roll. Everyone was looking so well and wealthy. The party will go on and on. The truth will be seen in the decision to hold or not to hold a by election. A party that is confident of winning will have no apprehension of taking the bull by the horns and will call a by election without hesitation. Any wishy washy excuses will be a sign of weakness, a party under siege, having little confidence in holding on to the seat in Punggol East. The siege mentality is all there for everyone to see.

A little decency from the workers

A fallen angel getting a little support from the workers. That was about the only silver lining in the latest episode of personal indiscretion. Instead of laughing their heads off, instead of grabbing the opportunity to twist the dagger deeper to extract more pain, to hear the scream, to make it hurt, it was just a polite admonishment. There was no need to go further than this to shower praises for being honourable and for being a good and clever boy. That would smell too much of hypocrisy.

The elite have something to learn from the workers, if nothing to learn about good manners, at least some decency of not kicking someone when he is down. It is a nasty but pleasant surprise that the once mighty elite, with halos on each and everyone’s head, once were standing on the high pedestal of moral righteousness and scream, on your knees, scoundrels, infidels and all. Bow your heads in shame for your disgraceful acts and conducts.

Where are the angels? Aren’t they going to put on their halos to pronounce in their haughty arrogance, that man must not sin, that angels are pristine and would not be tarnished by temptations.

The workers are more down to earth, knowing that all man will sin in times of weaknesses and should not be too harsh in their judgement against those that have fell victims to temptations. Workers are in many ways behaving like angels. Would angels then be more like workers and seek a new balance, a new ethos of kindness, sincerity and politeness, in acts and in words?

It is a painful lesson to learn from. Do not jump the gun.

North Korea successfully launched a satellite

The Americans and its proxies are calling it something akin to WMD. No country can launch a satellite without the approval of the international mafia. Countries like North Korea and Iran should remain as third world countries and not allowed to progress, not allowed to have their own satellites. They should forever be kept poor and be at the mercy of the mafia, to receive aids from the mafia and its proxies. They are condemning the North Koreans, threatened to shoot the rocket down, and now threatening sanctions as if the North Koreans have committed a grave sin or crime against humanity.

Now North Korea has put a satellite in the space. What is this accusation that it is a missile to attack other countries or to develop missiles when the mafia boss has countless of them? The next time when Kim Jung Un farts, the Americans would be accusing him of chemical warfare. What else is new? Crying wolf once too often becomes meaningless.

But no, many Asean countries will now be shivering in their pants, fearing the North Koreans are going to send its nuclear armed missiles to attack them. I am not sure if they really believe in such crazy ideas. I am not sure if North Koreans are mad or it is the people in Asean that are mad. One thing I am sure, the North Koreans will have no reasons to do such a silly thing for no reasons.

Well done North Koreans. You have outdone the South Koreans. The South Koreans, despite their claims of technological superiority and wealth, with Samsung and all the world brand electronics, are still unable to launch a satellite after many failed attempts. It is time the two Koreans reunite and share their technology and wealth and bring the two people together as one great people and powerful country.

Corruption or greed can be in many forms

Sin City’s biggest success in public administration is the weeding out of corruption of the monetary kind. The solution is quite simple really. Knowing the psychology of how human beans behave, when greed cannot be eradicated, the next best solution is to feed the greed. Make sure the greed is satisfied, then there will be no corruption.

Today we are facing another kind of greed that was alien to the Govt. Sex has never been an issue with LKY as a shining example of propriety. With such perfect role model, sexual misconduct of PAP MPs and Ministers is a rarity. The revelation yesterday is an indication that this kind of greed is starting to rear its ugly head. And it is better to nip it in the bud which the Govt is fame for.

Now, how best can greed be curbed? Even LKY said that he did not expect his Ministers and MPs to be celibate. Turning them into priests and priestesses is not going to work. Asking them to wear chastity belt may be a bit too much to ask for. And you do not want them to run around in Geylang with the foreign workers.

How could this greed be satisfied the way the greed for money was satisfied? Let them have as much sex as they want or commission a foreign agency to study on this problem? Maybe they can recommend what is enough to keep them from wanting more. I can expect another revolutionary and innovative way to curb this greed. The Govt can be very good in solving this kind of problems.