From tolerance to intolerance

This is a personal journey of an average Singaporean, like all Singaporeans. The changing mindset of a very tolerant Singaporean towards foreigners is very likely to be shared by all other average Singaporeans. Actually the word tolerance towards foreigners was never an issue, never appear in the Singaporean vocab. Most Singaporeans are or were very hospitable and warm to foreigners in this island. Most foreigners in the past left with a very pleasant experience of a very friendly people during their sojourns here. It is very unusual for a visitor or those who have worked or studied here to have had bad memories of a unfriendly people and ugly experiences because they were foreigners.

Things are changing so rapidly that the tolerance for foreigners is becoming intolerance. Some have broken out into out right anger. It used to be a little inconvenience taking public transport that was often a bit squeezy, and finding a seat a little lucky. The experience of taking public transport today is to have strangers, clearly foreigners, stuck to your sides, front and back, rubbing or knocking at you, breathing down your neck or yakking away at the top of their voices. Their unfamiliar and often unpleasant BO, with their arms stretched across your face cannot be fun but must be most unpleasant and irritating.

Fighting for a seat with the foreigners becomes a game of being ungraceful or disgraceful. What really troubles the Singaporeans must be the huge presence of foreigners and the deprivation of a better life for the citizens. When many Singaporeans are out of jobs, in between jobs, under employed, unemployed, while foreigners are fully employed, many taking up cushy and high paying jobs, things will turn a bit ugly. No one is complaining so much about foreign workers who are needed and tolerated here as transient workers.

And when foreigners flooded the housing markets and driving up housing prices, pushing them beyond the reach of citizens, and also the favourite item of car ownership becoming an impossible dream to many, tolerance will become intolerance.

Tensions will build up over time and over many unhappy incidents. The last straw, when Singaporeans become a minority, when they are victimized, discriminated by foreigners, you expect Singaporeans to continue to be meek and selfless and continue to put their arms up wide to embrace the foreigners? The elite in their little palaces can talk cock about sharing with the foreigners when they could hide in the comfy enclaves and move around in private cars.

The danger is that the rot will get worst and will affect the children of Singaporeans in more adverse ways in the future. This little piece of rock is home to the Singaporeans, the only thing they have. This little rock cannot be traded away for fiat money. The developers with their money motive will be happily bid for land at higher and higher prices to feed the foreign frenzy, with money from all over the world. The Singaporeans cannot afford to compete with the rest of the world on an ‘equal’ basis as many are much richer and able to buy up everything and replace the Singaporeans in everything, everywhere.

This tolerance and intolerance issue cannot be spoken in void. There are lives involved. There is country and citizens involved. It is not a simple economic number game. There are also many intangibles of being a people, a country and a nation. Yes, I am getting more intolerant to foreigners when they crossed my path, cut into my way and deprive me of things that I used to have as a citizen in my country.

Having one or two foreigners can be fun, a novelty. When the citizens become the one or two, and the foreigners swarming all over us, it is no fun anymore. It is intolerance, and this intolerance will grow in intensity and will be felt by more and more Singaporeans. It is a road that spells trouble.

Is Hsien Loong really trembling?

'Pentagon chief reassures a worried Lee Hsien Loong about US military commitment towards Asia-Pacific against growing Chinese threat

Turkish Weekly, 2 Apr 2013

U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Monday reassured Singaporean Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong of the U.S. commitment to rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific region.

Hagel "made clear the United States and the Department of Defense remain committed to the rebalance toward the Asia-Pacific region and that in the future there will be even more opportunities for closer collaboration between the United States and Singapore," the statement said....'

The above is culled from an article in TRE. Pentagon chief assured a worried Lee Hsien Loong of US military commitment? Is this what Hsien Loong is in Washington all about, that he is worried that the Americans will abandon the Asia Pacific region because of a Chinese threat? How did the Americans got to know that Hsien Loong was worried of the Chinese threat? Did Hsien Loong or someone from Singapore whisper to the Americans about this? Or is it a red herring that the Americans are sowing to create a divide between China and Singapore?

With this disclosure, that China is what Singapore is afraid of, and Hsien Loong so worried to make a 4 day official trip to Washington, would China keep quiet about it? Would China stop inviting Hsien Loong or LKY to Beijing, or would some top level visits be cancelled?

Now, would the MFA come up with another clarification that the Americans were putting words in Hsien Loong’s mouth, that there is no such thing, that there is nothing to fear about China? We are friends of China, we welcome all the big powers into the region peacefully and we are not American lackeys trying to contain China’s influence in the region. We are not part of the American scheme of things to balance China’s position in the region. Singapore needs not worry until China puts a claim on Pedra Branca. And if the Americans did not correct this misinformation, would Singapore continue to buy the F35s?

Is there any truth in the reported statement, or someone misquoted Chuck Hagel. Maybe it is true and that is why Singapore is going to buy the F35s to defend against a Chinese air attack, or to fight on the side of the Americans against the Chinese.

Seriously, I think it would be better to report this comment as an April Fool joke. It is reported three days late.

F35 - another American snake oil product

Look at the big picture of American defence system and picture who would attack the US home land and in what form the attacks would come, one would easily come to the conclusion that the F35 is a piece of gimmick that is unnecessary and wasteful, and sadly would have to be paid by the American tax payers only to benefit the arms manufacturers. The arms merchants would keep telling the American public of the need to keep buying the most expensive toys for their own good.

Who or which country in the world, in his right mind, would launch a military attack against the mighty Americans other than the militants in Japan during the Second World War? The hype and fear mongering of a North Korean or Iranian attack were simply foolish and meant for the silly American peasants and the peasants of the world to believe in. Simply put, what would the Americans do if it suffers a nuclear attack by missiles from another country? That country would be wiped out to Stone Age. That is the fate awaiting anyone or country that dares to do it. The banging of war drums and cymbals in North Korea is just that. Period. But the silly Koreans have been led to the slaughter house by the Americans pushing them on.

Coming back to the air defense system and strategies of the Americans. The F35s are only useful as an interceptor against an air incursion of fighter bombers, but their primarily role is more as a stealth attack bomber. For the defensive role it is absolutely redundant as no country within the range of the US mainland would be able to do that with what they have at the moment. The Russians and the Chinese could not ‘and would not’ launch an air strike of fighter bombers for many decades to come and neither would they want to go back to the stone age.

The F35s are only good as offensive weapons to be stationed in Europe or lift off from aircraft carriers. If the damn Americans did not have these weapons, they have a weapon less to conduct wars of aggression against other countries. Even without the F35s, the Americans have so many superior alternatives, the F22s and B2s, and even the antique B52s would deliver a deadly blow to any country, to conduct wars. F35s are extravagant toys to make the American public pay for them. Now the bill is so huge that the Americans are getting their allies and proxies to help to foot the bill.

Any real attacks against the American continent will be Armageddon, ICBMs from Russia and China. Such attacks will render the F35s completely useless. The best part, Russia and China will not do such a crazy thing to engage in an ‘end of the world’ war game. Neither would the Americans attack the Russians and Chinese with a similar attack. Such a war is inconceiveable by any of the three super powers.

So what is the purpose of F35s? It is simply created to generate income for the weapons industry. The Americans really have no use or need for such an aircraft, only to bully the lesser equipped countries like Iraq and Iran. Who is going to attack the USA by air power other than 911 version which will render the F35s useless, sitting on the tarmac?

6.9m squeeze - Is this for real?

Is this a hoax? Think it was posted yesterday, 1 April. What the poster is saying is that 6.9m is real. What it is also saying is that the squeeze is real. What it is also saying is that they did not know how to prevent the squeeze. What it is also saying is that the super talents got no answers. What it is also saying is that maybe the lay people may have the answer. What it is also saying is that you are paying millions to super talents who's forte is to ask the people for answers.

I am waiting for someone to come out and say this is an April Fool joke.

Meritocracy in practice in the red dot

I will stretch this statement to include graciousness and discipline in practice. Was at the train station this morning and found long queues, neat and tidy rows of people queuing up for the trains. So I joined the queue with about 20 people ahead. Just as I was thinking how nice, disciplined and orderly, a bunch of foreign workers surged forward and planted themselves on both sides of the barrier door. The Singaporeans remained in the queue and many missed the train as those crowding the doors were able to push themselves in first.

Singaporeans are not only courteous, polite and well mannered. Unfortunately this gracious streak, nurtured over the years, made them easy victims to the coarse and callous foreigners who would yell and scold them for the slightest thing, even when asking the foreigners to join the queue.

And while the Singaporeans would avoid littering, keep the streets clean, the foreigners would leave their litters and sputum everywhere, even raining them down from the flats.

And in employment and job placements, Singaporeans will write in their resumes exactly what they are, what they have and their job experience. They could not lie as one phone call would expose them of any misinformation. The foreigners could dress up their resumes like that of George Bush or Obama and got the job. No one really knows or can verify their resumes, or it is too troublesome to make that phone call to nowhere.

This is how meritocracy is being practiced in Singapore. The Singaporeans ended with the wrong end of the stick for being too nice, too orderly and too straight and honest. They did not know that they have cheated by the foreigners who demanded that Singaporeans practise meritocracy and play fair.

How stupid can Singaporeans be? Or how meritocratic can Singaporeans be?