entrapment

Dabbling with drugs is a social problem and made a criminal offence as it is a habit of choice. The pinky stuff can also be a habit of choice. But some are due to a biological complication, a mutation of sort, that they become different in their sexual orientation. Then some are psychologically wired wrongly. The bottom line is that not many have such sexual orientation out of choice. It is no fault of theirs and society must accommodate their existence and a place to live. Sexual preference as against sexual perversion are two different things and understandably, sometimes the line is quite blur. Child sex is obviously unacceptable and men preying on young boys, even if it is a natural or biological disorder, will not be accepted by society. Putting the black and clearcut cases aside, the pinkies should not be entraped into a situation and turn into criminals. Let them go about quietly in their own world without any glorification. Their sexual life, just like those of normal people, are private matters. Or shall we instal micro cameras to see whether adults or married couples engaged in foreplay or oral sex without intercourse?

a little bird flu rumour

Just something I received in the mail. "Bird Flu" Do you know that 'bird flu' was discovered in Vietnam 9 years ago? Do you know that barely 100 people have died in the whole world in all that time? Do you know that it was the Americans who alerted us to the efficacy of the human antiviral TAMIFLU as a preventative. Do you know that TAMIFLU barely alleviates some symptoms of the common flu? Do you know that its efficacy against the common flu is questioned by a great part of the scientific community? Do you know that against a SUPPOSED mutant virus such as H5N1, TAMIFLU barely alleviates the illness? Do you know that to date Avian Flu affects birds only? Do you know who markets TAMIFLU? ROCHE LABORATORIES. Do you know who bought the patent for TAMIFLU from ROCHE LABORATORIES in 1996? GILEAD SCIENCES INC. Do you know who was the then president of GILEAD SCIENCES INC. and remains a major shareholder? DONALD RUMSFELD, the present Secretary of Defence of the USA. Do you know that the base of TAMIFLU is crushed aniseed? Do you know who controls 90% of the world's production of this tree? ROCHE. Do you know that sales of TAMIFLU were over $254 million in 2004 and more than $1000 million in 2005? Do you know how many more millions ROCHE can earn in the coming months if the business of fear continues? So the summary of the story is as follows: Bush's friends decide that the medicine TAMIFLU is the solution for a pandemic that has not yet occurred and that has caused a hundred deaths worldwide in 9 years. This medicine doesn't so much as cure the common flu. In normal conditions the virus does not affect humans. Rumsfeld sells the patent for TAMIFLU to ROCHE for which they pay him a fortune. Roche acquires 90% of the global production of crushed aniseed, the base for the antivirus. The governments of the entire world threaten a pandemic and then buy industrial quantities of the product from Roche. So we end up paying for medicine while Rumsfeld, Cheney and Bush do the business. ARE WE CRAZY!!? OR ARE WE IDIOTS!!? AT LEAST PASS THIS ON SO THAT IT CAN BE KNOWN!!!!!!!

educating foreign nationals

Many have spoken about our generous contribution to the education of foreign nationals by granting them scholarships to study here. And many of these students have left our shores after benefitting from our generosities. Would there be some statistics on how much this project costs, how many have been trained and stayed and how many have taken us for a ride? If the numbers do not support that this programme be continued, by now the trend should be quite evident, then it should be scrapped and the money put to better use by training our own children. We do not have to be the international Santa Claus. We are too small to play that role. We have many children of citizens who are more deserving for such financial assistance. We need to be more charitable to our citizens than to foreign nationals who have no reason to want to be with us to deserve us throwing money at them. Would we see a report on this? Would our well paid investigative reporters take up this cause and do some research and analysis on the cost benefits of this programme?

myth 8

'Singaporeans are not creative.' First let me qualify this statement by saying that it is a generalisation and some section of Singaporeans can be very creative. I will prove that later. But overall we are not very creative. Just look at the shapes and colours of HDB estates will be enough to tell anyone that conformity is the key. One shape or thing that is deemed good or ok, just duplicate. Entering some HDB estates is like entering Legoland. Now this is little contradiction. Lego bricks are creative bits for children. Yeah, for children. But when adults are good at Lego bricks and build flats like Lego bricks, then can't be too creative in that. Where then is Singaporean most creative. Numbers. Singaporeans are absolutely fantastic with numbers. They used numbers so creatively to explain things. From complicated and difficult to explain issues, all these can be reduced to a few simple numbers and appear to be reasonable. Let's look at the accusation we heard everywhere that govt salaries are too high. How can it be when it is reduced to say a few plates of kway teow? Looks so cheap isn't it? And this can be further reduced to say 10c per citizen per day. Now that will make it even cheaper. Definitely affordable by everyone. Even a school children can set aside 10c a day for a good govt. Why didn't other countries think of using this formula? They can't. In third world countries, their leaders are mostly gangsters or unschooled soldiers. So not much grey matter to think of such clever ideas. Why not America? But America is run by a president that would probably be in the normal stream of our education system. Can't expect miracles from him either. If only the American president could persuade his people to pay him 10c per person daily, that's $36.50 a year multiply by 260 million population...wow, it is in billions! No need to covet the oil in the middle east. If this is not creative what else can be? So Singaporeans are not creative is a myth.

myth 7

One of the most talk about myth is perhaps this, Myth 7. 'Corruption is rampant.' Many have talked about corruption in Singapore either openly or in their whispers. They said you can feel it, or scratch it a little and all the ugliness of corruption will surface. Some political parties and individuals have also been attacking the govt on corruption. Unfortunately, all these are just accusations and wild accusations. So far none has been proven. Now there is a world of difference between accusation and proving it. Unless proven, one is innocent. Then take the case of NKF. Where is the corruption. No, there is no corruption. And that is why the authority finds it so difficult to pin a charge that can stick. The charges that finally came were more in the line of negligence, not doing due diligence, poor management judgement or oversight, or errorneous practices. It is lucky that these charges can be framed. If not, maybe they will have to look at over claiming bus fares or taking paper clips for personal uses. Then there is the infamous website against a minister. If the evidences are all there, as claimed, why didn't they take it to court? Our justice system is world best and manned by men of unquestionable honesty and integrity. Sue whoever for whatever wrong doings. Let the impartial court of justice decides. But they could not or dare not. They have to post the site from overseas and it becomes a rumour mongering machine. We are first world and must deal with issues like the first world. Facts, evidences, proofs, courts of laws, justice etc are what matters. If one cannot prove it, then it is all gossips and rumours and libellious allegations. Why are facts so unbeliever than fictions? This Myth 7 is one of the greatest Singapore myth.