ge round 26: qualilty of pap candidates

I couldn't believe when I heard the comments over TV about the quality of PAP candidates. Some even remarked whether they can do the job. My view is very simple. These are the best brains in their professions. They are people who have proven that they can work and can be successful. Their credentials are impeccable. Only reservation, which no one is wiser, is whether among them is another NKF potential. Other than a personal flaw that may surface over time, these are people that can and will do very well in their careers. Lets not doubt their abilities and intelligence. The only problem with such excellent profesionals coming into politics is the system of manpower management and allocation in a talent deprived nation. By our size, we have very limited talents in all fields. I find it a very bad idea to put these brilliant men and women into politics at a time when they are just peaking in their chosen fields. Allow me to elaborate. The general career pattern of a professional singaporean will conform to this pattern. At 25 to 35 years, a learning and skill acquisition phase where they try to establish themselves in their work. 35 to 45, established and accepted as a bright star or a potential bright star. 45 to 55, achievements and recognised as a leader in their respective fields. 55 to 70, assume leadership in society, in politics, business, trade or community. This last group is what I would think is the ideal final phase for a talented individual before he faded away. What the PAP system is doing is actually upsetting the naturally development of people and their career development. Pulling people in the 35 to 45 age group into politics is a bad move. First, they are just reaching the peak of their career but not really there. And uprooting them into politics will deprive them from achieving greatness in their profession. The profession will also be deprived of a rare talent and suffers as well. And because they were nearly there, they could not acquire all the dues, monetary and reputation, which are due to them. They will enter politics hungry, or fairly hungry, in money terms and in personal achievements in their trades. Yes they can gain fame and money in politics too. But that should not be their motivation. Politics is to serve, to help chart the nation, and at times can be very demanding and requires self sacrifices in many areas. These brilliant young people are expected to sacrifice their chosen professional career, family, and money. And if they come into politics thinking that money can be compensated, then it is bad for them and for the people. If they take the natural path, develop and acquire fame and achievements and earn all the money they deserved from 35 to 55, and then having done what they have done as a successful and recognised leaders in their fields, they can then come into politics, wiser, stable, secure and rich in their bank accounts and assets, they could be great leaders without craving for fame and money. And the nation will benefit from their professional contributions at their best. Now coming into politics when they are half way there, and have to quit politics probably in their late fifties, they ended up neither here nor there. This is a sheer waste of talent and our precious human resource. This, in my view, is a system fault. The system is upsetting the apple cart. I would agree that not all should follow a standard pattern of progression in their life/career. But to institutionalise or systemise this is not very good in the long run. When these good men are disrupted and asked to give way to new blood when they are in their fifties, they will be hanging in midair, neither here nor there. Ok, they can line up as directors of companies and use their contacts as leverage to earn director fees. This is hardly an option that will benefit from their real talents. A rather parasitic relationship.

a japanese plea

Kazuo Ogoura, a retired Japanese diplomat, wrote a passionate plea in the Straits Times on why China must support Japan's quest for a seat as a permanent member of the UN Security Council. In his four reasons, he said that it is in the interest of China to support Japan's entry. Not only that his reasons were wishy washy and unconvincing. Not only that the historical records of Japanese militarism was nothing but savagery that it is difficult for China to support Japan, the Japanese could not understand why China will not give them an inch to get into the UNSC. And it is not even the shrine visiting that makes the Chinese to look at Japan with disfavour. It is the deliberate military alliance with the Americans that puts Japan as the most dangerous country to China's security interest. How could China bring a wolf into the UNSC when the wolf has chosen to stay on the side of a bigger bad wolf and would together attack China if needed to? Japan has chosen to be China's number One enemy by choice. It sided with the Americans in practically every issue against China. It also signed a military pact with the Americans to protect Taiwan, an outrageous act that China is tolerating for the moment but will one day be used to kick the Japanese arse. It is the most blatant hostile act by Japan against China. And Japan wants China to support its entry into the UNSC to collude and attack China or undermine China's interest? Even the Americans have great reservation about the risk of a Japanese presence in the UNSC and refused to support it. Then why would China want to support Japan when Japan's number one military ally refused to support her?

welcome to malaysia

to all our visitors, welcome to malaysia. as we become islamised daily, it is a matter of time before we will become a full islamic state. for the time being, public hugging and kissing are now an offence in malaysia and those indulging in such activities publicly can be jailed for one year. more islamic laws and moral conducts will be introduced in a matter of time and we will keep all our visitors duly informed to prevent them from running foul of our islamic laws. please enjoy our hospitality. inshallah.

ge round 25: follow my rules

Wong Kan Seng has repeated the call to opposition parties to introduce their candidates for public scrutiny, just like what the PAP has been doing. This may not be the official election ruling, but it is the rules that PAP abides by. And oppositions are told to follow. Low Thia Khiang replied by saying, lets show hands. You don't hide the election date, tell us and we all show hands. What else does the PAP wants the opposition to be open? What else does the opposition wants the PAP to be open? Let's all be open. Everybody open cards and play open poker.

cyberspace and cybercitizens

Cyberspace starts with the 3 simple alphabets, www, which means world wide web. A person nagivating through cyberspace, is actually moving in a virtual world, in a different dimension. His address is a virtual address, nothing physical. He is actually a citizen of a virtual world, unconfined or unlimited by physical space. A cyberbeing actually resides no where if he does not state where is his residence. Or he could register his residence in any nooks or corners of the world. Or he could actually create a fictitious country with a fictitious address. Welcome to cyberspace and cyberbeings and cybercitizens. Can any country claim authority over such cybercitizens? Can they really think that they have jurisidiction over cyberbeings if the cyberbeing chooses to reside in virtual space? A blogger or forumer in cyberspace posts or speaks to the world and not to a particular country or remain in a particular country. www connects everyone in cyberworld into one world, no boundaries, no govt, no laws. Why should cybercitizens register with national bodies and subject themselves to the rules and laws of a country when their existence is in a virtual world?