A cut in CPF?

This is a deadly proposition. We are hearing news of layoffs and retrenchments. Anyone caught in such a situation is going to be dead meat. How are they going to pay their bills and mortgages? A cut in CPF will affect at least 80% of the population who are paying their mortgages and more in the heartland. Many have bought their HDB flats by maxing out on what they have in their CPF and their monthly CPF contributions. Get the biggest one can afford as the property prices are sure to go up in the future. A cut in CPF, if big enough, is going hurt everyone of them. This is one of the good things of our property ownership class, or flat ownership class. And everyone is so happy with asset inflation and blindly went ahead with bigger and bigger housing loans. Hope the CPF cut does not become a reality.

What would the average Singaporeans want?

Forget about a Swiss standard of living. Let those who can go for it. Let’s look at the average Singaporeans and use it as a reference point for public policy. My model of an average Singaporean family is a young couple, two kids, a 4 rm flat, a small weekend car, a $5k pm household income. In the case of the 4rm flat, the pricing should be such that it can be fully paid up in 15 years or less without emptying whatever cpf contributions the couple are putting in. And the family does not have to break their backs to make ends meet every month and still able to go on a short holiday in the neighbouring countries. Is this too much to ask for? You young people out there, what are your views? I think if govt policies and all the pricing for essential goods and services are tailored towards such an eventuality, the quality of life of the average Singaporeans will be pretty good. Forget about the crazy idea of working to death or working till 85. Only nuts or people with no sense of appreciating that living is more than just working will want to work till death do us part. There are more to life than just working. There are the children to enjoy and grow up with, the smelling of the roses along the way, the little indiscretions that spiced up the dull and routine lifestyle, the little adventures of ups and downs to challenge and pick oneself up after a fall, and all the little things that one wants to do at one’s whims and fancy. A good govt shall work towards providing an environment that makes all these little silly things possible. No need for the illusion of a Swiss standard lifestyle which only a few will attain. For those who can, good for them, but for the majority, the above are not too much to ask for. Has the govt mixed up its priorities? What is the point of a world class infrastructure, world class this and that if the average citizens could not enjoy even the simple things in life? Rush rush to keep themselves alive to pay bills. Any political party aspiring to give the people a better life shall take note of these simple aspirations. Some of you may want to add or subtract from the above model. Some may want a little more, some a little less. It’s ok. Give the average people a life, not a millstone to hang.

So mean testing is here

I only have a few simple questions to ask? Why are the hospitals insisting on providing expensive wards when many people do not want them? Are the hospitals serving according to the needs of the people or dictating their needs to the people? Why can't or won't the hospitals provide more C and B2 wards when the demands are there? This is another case of who is determining what is good for the people. Unfortunately the people have very little say in this. And the hospitals are determining what they should pay. You got money you must eat in restaurants.

Fair to who?

HDB has replied to See Leong Kit and again said that market pricing is the fairest way to go, but fair to who? Would the new buyers buying the same batch of flats and paying another $180k or $200k think that it is fair? There are many questions to be asked. What is the mission of HDB? Where are the statistics to show that there is a big market subsidy? What are the comparable flats that HDB is using to compute these new prices? Are the pricing static or forward looking? Or are they pegged in a similar model as electricity prices? With the property markets coming down rapidly, would the current pricing be fair to the new buyers? Actually these questions are unlikely to get a reply. The HDB has replied and case is closed. Those new buyers in the second batch should blame it on the market prices and accept the fact that they have to buy the flats from HDB at the new inflated prices. They must pay the higher prices to be fair to other buyers of other HDB flats. I don't buy the logic. But what is fair to one may not be fair to another. Who is to decide what is fair? Equal pain or equal gain?

Madoff With Hedge Funds' Money

By ALEN MATTICH A DOW JONES NEWSWIRES COLUMN LONDON -- ....According to press and blog reports, the SEC never investigated Bernie Madoff, never even put him through routine checks, because, well, he was too cuddly. And too well respected by his peers. OK, not quite never, back in 1992 they had a sniff about suspicious goings on in an unregistered Florida trading scheme, which they traced back to Madoff. But none of the accusations stuck and Madoff was left to make off with investors' money, unhindered forever after. Made all the more invulnerable by his status as a Wall Street institution. Because if Bernie Madoff, ex-chairman of Nasdaq, boss of one of its biggest market makers and manager of the most solid, long lived and steadily performing of all hedge funds wasn't purer than Caeser's wife then who was? Who indeed? 'This is how reputation and track record can blind people into complacency. - Redbean'