malaysia car toll hike

Singaporeans are responding negatively towards the impending toll hikes for Singapore cars going into Malaysia. From a personal and individual point of view this can be expected. It burns the pocket. The bargains will not be bargains anymore. The JB merchants too are unhappy as their businesses will definitely be affected. They too have their vested interest to look after. And they would like more free spending Singaporeans to go over and spend their money. From the Federal govt's point of view, it all makes economic sense. There is money to make. And quite substantial sum of money to collect after knocking off the cost of the collection system. The Federal govt has all the rights and reasons to impose tolls or whatever fees it thinks is good for them. And surely they will study the demand and supply curve to work out what is a reasonable amount to charge or whether they should even charge a toll. There are considerations of tourism and investment in the Johore industrial park, tourists coming into Malaysia, attracting people to visit the country for all the good reasons. Presumably all these have been in the computation and the 20 ringgits will bring in more ringgits than losing them. Good for the Federal govt even if it will cost more for the travellers and workers.

nkf story - tragedies begin

The tragedies beginning Once the shining knights that were paraded in front of the media, on screen and in the MSM, in the companies of dignitaries, feasted by the highest office, receiving heaps of praises from all corners, now one by one is falling down like straw men. After being put on the witness box, one by one crumbled and shrank. As each day passes, they retreated deeper into themselves. Scheming, conspiring, unethical, brainless, opinionless, lost, empty heads, concealing information, distorting information, fabricating lies etc could not describe enough of the characters of this show. The only one that is still standing like a hero is Durai. He still comes across as a great organiser, a leader of men and women. Maybe it is easier when men and women were easily cowed or led. And he was even praised as a visionary by senior govt officials. Greatness cannot be easily tarnished. Our society really appreciates talents. What is unbecoming is that so far none of them has shown any sense of shame, or that they have done something seriously wrong. They are all still holding their heads high, and smilingly away. Not a single sense of guilt. Maybe this is just a civil suit and no guilt is involved or implicated. It is just individuals claiming against another individual. When will the heads be held down? When will the silly smiles be wiped off their faces? When will anyone of them feel that they have done wrong? Is this a fault of our education system? Or is it the fault of the wrong values that our society have nurtured? Or is it just personal values of individuals?

why so difficult?

The NTUC is struggling with how to juggle CPF and Medisave contributions for the lower income and grandpas and grandmas. The solution is so simple. No CPF and Medisave contributions for them after 55. Any contribution should be voluntary. There are so many advantages for doing away with compulsory CPF and Medisave contributions for the oldies. Why so difficult?

more jobs to locals

Lee U Wen wrote in the Today paper, 'Every now and then when employment figures are revealed, there are murmurs about of jobs going to foreigners. Yesterday's blockbuster should end the debate.' And year 2006, 88,200 jobs to locals and 85,100 to foreigners. So more jobs to locals. Case close. Let's move on.

Car collection - A new heartlander's hobby

Car collection - A new heartlander's hobby When COE prices shot to the sky, Singaporeans bemoaned the high prices of cars and the inability to own one. So the govt changes tact and allow COE prices to fall so that more Singaporeans can now afford to own their cars. What a great relief. Now all the heartlanders are scrambling to buy cars. For heartlanders who work in town, the privilege of driving to work is $500 a month, including parking, ERP and petrol. And this excludes parking in HDB car park, additional parking in shopping centres etc, monthly instalment, insurance, maintenance, summons... What could happen is that many will buy a car to appreciate on weekends, cleaning it and sitting inside the car in the car park to listen to radio. Taking the car out for a spin is not going to be cheap. HDB carparks can be turned into a car hobbyist playground to meet up with other car owners for chit chat and admiring all the brand new and hardly used cars.