Myth 184 - How much is the President and PM paid?

Officially and often quoted in theTOM, both are paid about $3.4 to $3.6 million annually, not including any other perks. It is also a well known fact that the annual bonus is between 6 mths to 9 mths, possibly 12 mths. So how much when you add both together? $3.4m or $3.6m? Or $5-$7 mil? And the life time pension of something like 75% of their basic pay could boost this amount by easily another $2 mil. So how much are their pays?

Time to kill the living gods

The living gods once found adultery so detestable that both parties will be drown in a cage when caught. The living gods also claimed that virtuous women shall be buried alive with their husbands. And those who do not believe in the same god as the living gods should be burnt alive at the stakes. Villages were torched and their population cut down by the living gods. Today, the living gods are still much alive and kicking and dictating to the human beans what they think is good for the beans. If your kidney is failing, wait for your turn, if you are lucky, a kidney will arrive. If not, wait to die. And the poor shall be protected from exploitation by the rich and to live in dignity and in poverty. The living gods also said that human beans shall live past 85 years. Sorry about your money in the CPF. No the living gods never say sorry. They just keep it for you. And the living gods also said you will need more visits to the hospitals when you grow old. Abracadabra, your $30k becomes untouchable. What else do the living gods say? Maybe it is time to burn them on the stake. They deserve it for being so righteous and so kind.

The fanatics decide who should die!

Under the cloud of high moral fanatics The kidney patient is dying. Across the road, several thousands were also dying... of hunger. Some may still get by, living a life of extreme deprivation, never ever have a single day of a decent meal. The obvious outcome is that the kidney patient will die if he can't get a kidney transplant. Many of the hungry and deprived beans wil also die, miserably, without a day of joy and contentment to have a hearty meal. They simply cannot afford it. But the kidney patient may live, and some of these hungry mouths could live better, if the gulf created by the high moral fanatics could be bridged. The logic of these fanatics is that the poor will be exploited by the rich. When has the poor not been exploited by the rich? Then, shouldn't they ask the poor if they are happy to live their pathetic lives given a choice to sell a piece of their organ to those who need them? Who should decide or who is deciding the fate of the kidney patients and the desperate poor? It is bad to benefit from the desperation of the poor to buy their organs. Sound very noble and very tooth. What if the choice is a better life, free from deprivation, and still live on? What if it is a conscious choice, carefully deliberated, that the man is willing to part with his organ to provide for himself and family, a better life, and live with some dignity? What these fanatics have done is to impose their values, their goodness and their selfish do gooder mentality on the desperate poor by not offering them a choice. The fanatics have decided and judged that they should not be allowed to live better by trading their organs. And the fanatics will walk with their heads hung high, that they are morally righteous, that they have helped these poor and deprived beans to live on, hungry every day, with little food and clothing. The fanatics will feel so good that they are their guardians, self declared. That all these miserable people are unable to think for themselves and needed to be protected from exploitation by the rich. Is that so? Who is more righteous? Why can't civilised people, people of the law, work out some rules and regulations to protect the poor from exploitation and allow them to trade their body parts if they so wanted, without jeopardising their lives, so that they and their families can live better? Are the fanatics really helping them by closing off their options!

Why can't I sell my kidney?

Who is the fanatic who decides that I can't sell my kidney? Why should such fanatics have so much say over my body parts? There are many people who are living in misery, not even able to feed themselves with a full meal a day. Some hungry for the whole of their lives. To these people, to be able to sell a part of their body for $20k or $30k can make their lives so much more pleasant even for a year or two. Why should the elite of the world decide on the fate of these miserable people and condemned them to perpetual misery? Will their lives be better off selling a part of it or will they be better off in their pathetic state of being alive? Then there are also the body parts of the dead or going to die. Cadavers have been so to medical students. Nothing new. HOTA has been farming body parts for free. Should the people have the right to ownership of their body parts and will it to be sold to benefit their love ones? Can it be seen as private properties, assets to be handed down? Why is it that the state owns our bodies when we are dead and also owns our bodies when we are alive? In the case of willing buyer and willing seller, let the market forces determine how it should be sold. Why are we tempering with the market mechanism in a century when oppression or slavery can be persecuted by the law? Should the law make provisions to allow people more freedom to live a life they so choose, even to sell their body parts, fully aware and responsible for their own actions? Human body parts are definitely better than animal or synthetic parts. Many have gone to waste through ignorance. Let the owners of their parts decide what they want to do with them. Any fanatics want to impose their moral values and superior righteousness over the rest of the people?

ERP is getting on the nerves

We are hearing more and more noises in TOM of grouses on ERPs. Some even accused the LTA of right hand not knowing what left hand is doing. But actually they do. Every dept and ministry is functioning very well. The people with grouses are those who cannot afford to pay. If you can, driving around is going to be a joy. We have world class public transport system that is efficient and affordable. Nothing to fret about really. The only little concern is the buses may ply less often once too many ERPs are put up. It will be quite costly to have a few thousand buses paying ERPs 20 or 30 times daily. Some were also concern about the quality of family life. Actually family life should improve as more people will choose to stay at home instead of going out. And with so much time at hand, they can spend time washing and admiring their precious cars in the car parks. Overall, Singapore will be greener with lesser people driving and lesser cars on the road. Business will benefit from freer flow of traffic. And with people all staying at home, there will be more free space around to accommodate the 6.5m population coming our way. Maybe can raise the number to 10m. ERPs not only solve transportation problem, they also solve social problem and green problems.