Medical bills in tens of thousands are increasingly common. How many average Singaporeans can afford to cough out this sum of money at one go? And bills of several hundred thousands are just as common in terminal cases or cancer treatment. What to do, everything is getting more expensive. And the medical professionals are humans too and need the money to pay for all the expensive things they need for a good life. The rentals for their office space do not come cheap. The $20m bungalow is something that they need for a more comfy life, and so is the $1m Lamborghini. It is not their fault and there is nothing wrong with them wanting the good life.
When the cost of everything goes up, especially housing, properties, the good life, someone must pay for it. And in professional services, the cost will be passed to the consumers, plus more profits added for good measures, or for the next property or the next car. The inflation game will be nice to play if money is available to everyone, especially the average Singaporeans who form the bulk of consumers. Unfortunately their income does not grow in the same rate and every little increment will be eaten up by the little increases here and there. And when a big medical bill drops into the mail box, it will clean up everything, and some may end up in debt.
Gan Kim Yong is going to make medicare more affordable. No one will be deprived of medicare. The cost will be manageable. Don’t be shy to ask for help. Don’t be shy when they mean test you. They mean well and you may be lucky the govt will provide some assistance through Medifund. And for the fortunate, the bills may end up as arrears in the hospital’s account. Did the patient abscond, in debt and unable to pay, or simply die? Whatever, it is a happy thing that so many people cannot pay their medical debt. Maybe the hospitals will close an eye. Surely they will not paint O$P$ on the debtors’ doors.
And since people have more money in their Medisave Accounts, more will be made available to pay for their affordable medical bills. This reminds me of the money in people’s Ordinary Account. Since they have so much money, HDB prices will be made affordable for them to pay through their CPF savings, and so affordable that nothing much is left for retirement.
I thought a better solution will be to stop people from accumulating too much savings and have more money to spend on other things. If the affordable bills will inflate according to the fattening of the Medisave Accounts, I am worried that it will end up like the empty Ordinary Accounts.
Every time the word affordable is mentioned, it sends a chill down my spine.
3/19/2012
God is might, Japanese version
The cocky Japanese and their warlike nature cannot be concealed for long. No Asian country that suffered the unprovoked invasion in WW 2 and suffered the beastly Japanese atrocities can ever forget what the true nature of the Japanese was and is. Today it is hidden under coat and tie and a superficial external manner of politeness.
Do not be deceived that the Japan Defense Force is for defense. It has all the capabilities to invade another nation and the Koreans would be easy meat. The North Koreans are now being targeted as a possible little boy to be whacked. Japan has declared openly its intention to shoot down the North Korean rocket delivering its satellite to space. And the excuse, similar to the Israelies and the Americans, it poses a threat to Japan’s national security. And it has the backing of the international mafia gang of the US and the UK shouting the same slogan.
The rocket sending the satellite to space can be converted for military use. So can any aircraft/ships the North Koreans intend to build eventually be turned into long range bombers and warships. And if there are uranium ores found in North Korea, it cannot mine them as they have potential for making nuclear bombs. This is the logic of international gangsters.
On the other hand, it is alright for the mafia and the war mongering nations, and those that have been conducting aggression against other smaller countries, to own all the nuclear weapons and big invading forces. Those who own the big guns can then dictate to those without the guns, how to behave, what they can or cannot do. And in the name of its national security, no matter how far fetch, it gives them the right to attack another country, in this case to shoot down a satellite carrying rocket.
Yes, God is might and weaker countries must acquire nuclear weapons and a big armed force to avoid being dictated and treated like semi colonies of big powers. Their only road to freedom from oppression by the big powers is exactly the acquisition of nuclear arms and more arms, to keep the international mafia at bay.
Every country has a right to its own defense force and the judgement is not by pointing a finger at the other party of possible intent. It is the act of aggression, naked aggression that makes a country guilty of crime against another country. The mere acquisition of weapons is no crime and not necessarily an act of aggression. But when one has all the weapons, and acts like God, it is all a different matter. God is might and God is right when it has might.
Japan is thinking that it can still bully the Koreans and master over them like their old colony. It is inviting the wrath of God if it dares shoot down the North Korean rocket. It is an open act of war, unprovoked. And let the North Koreans rain down all they have on Japanese soil. The Japanese love war and have no fear for war and destruction. Another few Hiroshima and Nagasaki are small matters. Such an open war cry is nothing different from that of the Israelies.
Let God be the judge and deal the aggressors the judgement they deserved.
Do not be deceived that the Japan Defense Force is for defense. It has all the capabilities to invade another nation and the Koreans would be easy meat. The North Koreans are now being targeted as a possible little boy to be whacked. Japan has declared openly its intention to shoot down the North Korean rocket delivering its satellite to space. And the excuse, similar to the Israelies and the Americans, it poses a threat to Japan’s national security. And it has the backing of the international mafia gang of the US and the UK shouting the same slogan.
The rocket sending the satellite to space can be converted for military use. So can any aircraft/ships the North Koreans intend to build eventually be turned into long range bombers and warships. And if there are uranium ores found in North Korea, it cannot mine them as they have potential for making nuclear bombs. This is the logic of international gangsters.
On the other hand, it is alright for the mafia and the war mongering nations, and those that have been conducting aggression against other smaller countries, to own all the nuclear weapons and big invading forces. Those who own the big guns can then dictate to those without the guns, how to behave, what they can or cannot do. And in the name of its national security, no matter how far fetch, it gives them the right to attack another country, in this case to shoot down a satellite carrying rocket.
Yes, God is might and weaker countries must acquire nuclear weapons and a big armed force to avoid being dictated and treated like semi colonies of big powers. Their only road to freedom from oppression by the big powers is exactly the acquisition of nuclear arms and more arms, to keep the international mafia at bay.
Every country has a right to its own defense force and the judgement is not by pointing a finger at the other party of possible intent. It is the act of aggression, naked aggression that makes a country guilty of crime against another country. The mere acquisition of weapons is no crime and not necessarily an act of aggression. But when one has all the weapons, and acts like God, it is all a different matter. God is might and God is right when it has might.
Japan is thinking that it can still bully the Koreans and master over them like their old colony. It is inviting the wrath of God if it dares shoot down the North Korean rocket. It is an open act of war, unprovoked. And let the North Koreans rain down all they have on Japanese soil. The Japanese love war and have no fear for war and destruction. Another few Hiroshima and Nagasaki are small matters. Such an open war cry is nothing different from that of the Israelies.
Let God be the judge and deal the aggressors the judgement they deserved.
3/18/2012
Is Parliament a new playground for MPs?
The background of MPs in Parliament is as varied as the people in the market. We have people from all kinds of professions, the rich and the not so rich, the old and the young, those that have grown up, those who still think they are in schools. And with the introduction of NMPs, we have people representing different interest groups and niche circles.
Now, how would this diverse group of people interact in Parliament and how would they use Parliament to serve their agenda. I believe they would be there to promote the interest of the people or their professions and interest groups.
Would an actor or actress go to Parliament to practise acting? Would a lawyer go to Parliament to practise how to become a better lawyer? Or would a soldier go to Parliament to play shooting at your enemy since he likes to play with guns? Or should a school prefect go to Parliament to role play as a prefect as he misses the fun he had as a school boy? Some may go to Parliament to fly kites as that was their hobby and they love flying kites.
I believe Parliament is for more serious stuff and MPs in Parliament are to discuss serious matters that will affect the lives of the people and country. I hope there are not anglers who carry their fishing rods to cast in Parliament. Or the little scientists to fly their paper planes across the house.
Does anyone have any idea why he is in Parliament or what he should do in Parliament, seriously, other than to have some fun?
Now, how would this diverse group of people interact in Parliament and how would they use Parliament to serve their agenda. I believe they would be there to promote the interest of the people or their professions and interest groups.
Would an actor or actress go to Parliament to practise acting? Would a lawyer go to Parliament to practise how to become a better lawyer? Or would a soldier go to Parliament to play shooting at your enemy since he likes to play with guns? Or should a school prefect go to Parliament to role play as a prefect as he misses the fun he had as a school boy? Some may go to Parliament to fly kites as that was their hobby and they love flying kites.
I believe Parliament is for more serious stuff and MPs in Parliament are to discuss serious matters that will affect the lives of the people and country. I hope there are not anglers who carry their fishing rods to cast in Parliament. Or the little scientists to fly their paper planes across the house.
Does anyone have any idea why he is in Parliament or what he should do in Parliament, seriously, other than to have some fun?
3/17/2012
44 men to make or break your life … and your country
Every 5 years our democratic system gives the citizens the right to elect 87 men and women to run the country and indirectly our lives. And by the rule of a simple majority, all it needs is 44 men to be elected from one party to form the ruling govt. In a normal democratic system they will manage the country under some platforms and ideas they sold to the electorate and are expected to work within those ideas and policies during their term in office. Varying from those consented ideas will be a violation of trust. Running away with new ideas that were not agreeable during the election promises would be a breach of faith and the people’s consent be sought again.
A mature democracy would have its checks and balance to ensure that the ruling govt does not get carried away with what they want to do and think that they can commit murders with total disregard to the views of the people. In an immature state, where the people are ignorant, depoliticised, fear of the govt and did not know their right to change govt, many trespasses, abuses and unilateral decision making in direct conflict with the wants of the people are often shafted down the people’s throats at will.
Are we still in such a state of immaturity or have we grown up as a well educated, informed and politicised people, aware of our rights as citizens, the OB markers that the govt must respect, and our right to shape our lives and the future of our nation? Or are the people still as naïve, apolitical, disenfranchised, to surrender all their rights to an elected govt of 44 men to do as they pleased with their lives and country?
In an era of ignorance and illiteracy, the people may by default allow the elite to rule them on the assumption that they know better. And sometimes the elite may get deluded or delude the people into believing that they are demi gods or immortals, and they are the best to drive their lives and country forward. I believe as a people calling ourselves first world, with many highly educated and qualified, such myths will long be thrown into the longkangs. The people are now as knowledgeable and well informed as the ruling elite, and have a mind of their own to know or to question what they want in their lives and where the country shall be heading. There is really little between the ruling elite and the people at large in terms of intellect and wisdom.
Assuming the latter is where we are today, should the people continue to dismissively take the edicts of the elite and let the elite rule them, interfere with their lives and take the country to wherever they want?
Do we want to have a 6m population or more, ever increasing housing prices, unable to own private cars unless paying with an arm or a leg, that we should be content to live in smaller and smaller high rise flats, lesser breathing and leisure space, to go around in public transports that the people have little control of and often at the mercy of operators’ interests and whims and fancies and with little privacy or privacy violated by the ill mannered and uncouth?
Would it be time that the people tell the 44 elected representatives that they are there, given the chance to run the country, only with the consent of the people, and if they failed or are not up to it in their jobs, they will be summarily removed by the people? Is it time the people take control of their country, decide where it wants it to go, and be in charge and not be ruled by 44 people who were only to do a job with their approval and not to think they can do anything they want without the people’s agreement, that they own the country, the people and the people’s life and wealth?
Isn’t it silly for 3m people to succumb to 44 men and women elected by them to do as they please and with the people only at best, crying out loud but helpless to do anything about it? Who owns this country and who should decide how the people are to live their own lives?
A mature democracy would have its checks and balance to ensure that the ruling govt does not get carried away with what they want to do and think that they can commit murders with total disregard to the views of the people. In an immature state, where the people are ignorant, depoliticised, fear of the govt and did not know their right to change govt, many trespasses, abuses and unilateral decision making in direct conflict with the wants of the people are often shafted down the people’s throats at will.
Are we still in such a state of immaturity or have we grown up as a well educated, informed and politicised people, aware of our rights as citizens, the OB markers that the govt must respect, and our right to shape our lives and the future of our nation? Or are the people still as naïve, apolitical, disenfranchised, to surrender all their rights to an elected govt of 44 men to do as they pleased with their lives and country?
In an era of ignorance and illiteracy, the people may by default allow the elite to rule them on the assumption that they know better. And sometimes the elite may get deluded or delude the people into believing that they are demi gods or immortals, and they are the best to drive their lives and country forward. I believe as a people calling ourselves first world, with many highly educated and qualified, such myths will long be thrown into the longkangs. The people are now as knowledgeable and well informed as the ruling elite, and have a mind of their own to know or to question what they want in their lives and where the country shall be heading. There is really little between the ruling elite and the people at large in terms of intellect and wisdom.
Assuming the latter is where we are today, should the people continue to dismissively take the edicts of the elite and let the elite rule them, interfere with their lives and take the country to wherever they want?
Do we want to have a 6m population or more, ever increasing housing prices, unable to own private cars unless paying with an arm or a leg, that we should be content to live in smaller and smaller high rise flats, lesser breathing and leisure space, to go around in public transports that the people have little control of and often at the mercy of operators’ interests and whims and fancies and with little privacy or privacy violated by the ill mannered and uncouth?
Would it be time that the people tell the 44 elected representatives that they are there, given the chance to run the country, only with the consent of the people, and if they failed or are not up to it in their jobs, they will be summarily removed by the people? Is it time the people take control of their country, decide where it wants it to go, and be in charge and not be ruled by 44 people who were only to do a job with their approval and not to think they can do anything they want without the people’s agreement, that they own the country, the people and the people’s life and wealth?
Isn’t it silly for 3m people to succumb to 44 men and women elected by them to do as they please and with the people only at best, crying out loud but helpless to do anything about it? Who owns this country and who should decide how the people are to live their own lives?
3/16/2012
Israel awaiting the wrath of God
No country in the world other than Israel would dare openly shout that it would attack another country on the pretext of protecting its national interest. Iran cannot have the nuclear bomb. Only Israel can and can have many. Israel’s security or insecurity is to ensure that no one is allowed to carry a big stick other than itself.
The other country that should also suffer the wrath of God is the USA. It shares the same doctrine and logic. In the name of its national security or insecurity, it goes around the world attacking other countries or messing around with other nation’s politics and security. My security is your insecurity, your oppression and submission. Only the US can have the biggest military outfit to attack other countries. No one else is allowed to. Any country wanting to build a strong defence force must explain to Washington, to Hilarious directly.
How many lives will be destroyed in an attack on Iran in the name of Israel’s security? What if every country adopts this doctrine and policy? Every other weaker country would be attacked and oppressed and prohibited from building its own defence capability. Is this the logic of a civilized country or the logic of gangsters? I read recently a quote that the Red Indians of old America were savages while the Europeans were civilized. History said the savages were savaged and terminated by a series of coordinated genocides by the civilized Europeans to enable the civilized savages to take over the land of people of a different civilization, definitely not savages.
The Red Indians were branded as savages, and their homes, communities and husbandry, their land, were robbed from them. They were a threat to the lives of the Europeans and must be destroyed. Today the Iranians and Arabs are regarded not much different from the Red Indians, as savages, untrustworthy, dangerous and a threat to the survival of the Israelis and Western dominance. They need to be oppressed and shackled for their own good. They must not be allowed to challenge, or be strong enough to pose a problem to the West and Israel.
God is might.
The other country that should also suffer the wrath of God is the USA. It shares the same doctrine and logic. In the name of its national security or insecurity, it goes around the world attacking other countries or messing around with other nation’s politics and security. My security is your insecurity, your oppression and submission. Only the US can have the biggest military outfit to attack other countries. No one else is allowed to. Any country wanting to build a strong defence force must explain to Washington, to Hilarious directly.
How many lives will be destroyed in an attack on Iran in the name of Israel’s security? What if every country adopts this doctrine and policy? Every other weaker country would be attacked and oppressed and prohibited from building its own defence capability. Is this the logic of a civilized country or the logic of gangsters? I read recently a quote that the Red Indians of old America were savages while the Europeans were civilized. History said the savages were savaged and terminated by a series of coordinated genocides by the civilized Europeans to enable the civilized savages to take over the land of people of a different civilization, definitely not savages.
The Red Indians were branded as savages, and their homes, communities and husbandry, their land, were robbed from them. They were a threat to the lives of the Europeans and must be destroyed. Today the Iranians and Arabs are regarded not much different from the Red Indians, as savages, untrustworthy, dangerous and a threat to the survival of the Israelis and Western dominance. They need to be oppressed and shackled for their own good. They must not be allowed to challenge, or be strong enough to pose a problem to the West and Israel.
God is might.
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