Why cause hardship in the name of paternalism?

There are many poor buggers out there who can make their lives so much better, or breathe a sigh of relief when they can lay hands to their hard earned life savings. Even $20k is a lot of money to these humble people who have been living from hands to mouth all their lives. The question is why deprive these poor buggers from having a few days easier? And many of them will have to set aside $30k in Medisave and another $120k in the minimum sum which they may not touch before they kick the bucket. For sure, many will have to leave behind at least $30k in the Medisave. Is this good for the people? Is this what paternalism is all about? Or should the meaning and definition of paternalism be changed? Many terms in the dictionary should also be changed to accommodate such a new definition of paternalism when one cannot distinguish between good and evil, mean and kindness, helping and oppressing. Like the famous phrase, with such good friends, you don't need enemies.

The road to self destruction

It must be the most efficient, effective and certain road to take to self destruction. The formula is simple, over pricing and over paying and let them run to their natural ends. Let the cost of living run free, be delirious with all the high property prices and cost of doing business. Let all prices go one way, up, to give the impression of quality and well being. And as all things get more costly, pay the employees more so that they can afford them, or if not, still appears to be catching up with the runaway prices. Feel good to pay $100k for a car when others only need to pay $20k. Feel good to pay $100 per visit to a doctor when people can pay $10. Feel good to pay $10,000 for a stay in the hospital when others pay $300. And there will be this illusion of richness. A million dollar used to be able to buy several landed bungalows. Now you will need several millions just to buy a sem D. The old property owners might owned several properties, but could only called themselves millionaires. Does not sound great when every private apartment owner could possibly be holding to a million dollar property. Now the rich will flash around with their self worth in the billions. One day when paper value disappears, owning 10 houses is still 10 houses. One apartment is still on apartment. A car is still a car, be it $100k or $20k. In the mean time, keep paying and keep chasing the runaway prices. See how many more years can this go on before it collapses under a moutain of banana notes. And people are encouraged to buy annuities that will pay $300 of banana notes in the future.

Gang fights on the rise?

There seems to more reports on fightings by groups of people, probably gangs, on our streets. There were people being knifed and beaten to death. We have been enjoying the reputation for being a safe and good place to bring up children. Are we going to let all these to happen and ruin our reputation and safety of ordinary people? Are we going to be like another JB before we do something? I will strongly recommend strong police actions on such gangs, and cane them furiously when caught. Make sure it tears their buttons to pieces. We cannot have these gangs on our streets. We cannot have gangs who think they can go around beating and killing people and get away with it. Whack them hard.

FT as soldiers?

I think it will be a cheaper solution if we offer to the foreign workers and foreign talents a citizenship if they join the SAF. It will cost probably 1/3 what we need to pay to our locals. And the Tamil Tiger brand has been proven to be tough fighters. Don't bet on this as a wild thought. Some day it may happen. The trick is how to prevent them from taking over the country. Insert into everyone of them a self destruct mini bomb with a 3 year time bomb, and the option to blow up at the press of a button. The French have their French Legion of Africans. The British have their Sikh Army, the Sepoys and other Indian Contigents. We have our Gurkhas. A Tamil Tiger Legion?

Letters to the press

Three letters in the Today paper. One claimed that the PTC are not using statistics properly in approving the next bus fare hike. Another claimed that the PTC are not thinking about the elderly and needy who have no income. And a third said HDB was not compassionate enough. If all these claims are true, then it is not funny. Using statistics or using statistics to serve one's ends, that I have just touched a couple of days ago. Use the statistics to serve one's interest. Read the part that fit into your own scheme of things. It has always been like that. It is called the ingenious way of using statistics to benefit oneself. Only the user knows what he is doing. He answers to his conscience. As for the elderly and the needy, they need not worry. There is a $3 million cash fund to help them. At $30 per head, 100,000 of them will stand to benefit. So all these people will be better off than before the fare hike. Now what more can they ask for. Some of them may not even take public transport and may get $30 extra pocket money, that is, if the money gets to them. As for the HDB case, it is a very complicated matter. That one got to leave it to the paid experts to handle.