12/13/2013

Haven for FWs

By not letting the FWs have their alcohol, not having buses to fetch them to meet with their friends in Little India, what would the workers do? Stay in their dormitories, watch TV or video, play caram, basketball, volley ball? And they would eat instant noodles, drink tea and kopi and get high? Are there other ways to help them unwind and be happy with their friends and alcohol?
 

If I am not mistaken, the old Turf Club is the ideal place as a haven for the foreign workers. It is big enough, centrally located, big car park, and unused but with all the facilities for a big crowd. All the dormitories can hire coaches to bring the FWs to this great common area to have fun and some private time among themselves. There is no need to disturb the residents, no need to cause traffic jams, no need to pee and shit on the road side as the toilet facilities are more than ample for their needs. And it is a damn decent place with good lightings and security fences.
 

All that is needed is to put up some food merchants to provide everything they need. The liquor licence holders can relocate their stalls in this new haven and no need to kpkb that they have invested so much money and no liquor sale means lose big money. The current foodstalls at Turf City will also be seeing a boom in their businesses and would be very thankful to the govt.
 

Think this is not only a win win for every party. It is a win, win, win, win and win for more than everyone. The entertainment industry can also do their bit to liven up the place. And no one can complain that they have been kept in a slum area. This is district 10, mind you. Ok, Ok, some shops in Little India may lose a bit of business. But allow them to open branches in the new place should help to increase their income. Can rename this place as the Little Taj Mahal.
 

What do you think? Or else rent a vacant piece of land in Batam and send them there during the weekend? Batam businesses will boom and the island will become another vibrant and busy place, more GDP, more foreign exchange and prosperity for the islanders. There will be big demands for food, entertainment and properties and all the services the FWs need. Still better than one of our precious little island that is undeveloped, no facilities and too small.

Why we should not buy the F35s

‘Singapore’s Chief of Defence Lt Gen Ng Chee Meng has confirmed purchase of F35B fighter plane: US General.’ This is the title of a report in The Diplomat on 18 Oct 13. It quoted Gen Herbert J Carlisle saying that he had spoken to Lt Gen Ng and Singapore has decided to buy the B model VSTOL F35 for a start. In the latest media report Ng Eng Hen was quoted to say that no decision has been made yet but Singapore is seriously considering the aircraft. Eng Hen also said Singapore is in no hurry to decide on the purchase. What is the truth the public would not know as this must be Top Secret in military terms. Let’s take Eng Hen’s word at face value as he is the Minister and would not lie in public.
 

There are many reasons why Singapore should not buy this crazily priced fighter aircraft. Why do we need such an advanced and expensive aircraft for? Who are we going to fight with and what kind of aircraft do our enemies have to contend with? There is no sense if Singapore is buying this aircraft to defend against a superpower.
The only reality is to be better than our neighbours. So we are going to spend billions of our public money to be like the Joneses? And this one upmanship can only last for a few years if our Joneses have the same mentality and go one up after we paid for these toys. Then we would have to go one up on them again, spending more billions. The only people who are going to be very happy and laughing themselves silly at us would be the arms merchants. They make silly govts trying to outdo each other by buying their expensive toys.
 

Why can’t a deal be made with our neighbours to cap our military expenditure and not be exploited by the arms merchants and make a fool of everyone of us while they make themselves very rich with our money?
 

The other simple reason why this aircraft should not be bought is being practical and sensible about how we spend our money. Each aircraft is costing a few hundred million dollars. Every aircraft that falls off the sky is going to burn a big hole in our pocket. And the aircraft can be shot down by cheap missiles in the air or cheap mortars on the ground. Worst, any pilot error or mechanical trouble in the air would mean the ditching of a few hundred millions at one go. It is just too expensive a toy to maintain and to lose.
 

With the same money we could have many more F15s and F16s to do an equally good job. We are not going to fight the Martians with the latest technology in the world. Think money so easy to come by meh? The planes are just too expensive to operate. We are not Third World leaders with Third World mentality and craving for the biggest gun to show off. We are First World leaders and should be able to think more wisely not to go blindly into an arms race when there is no need to do so.
 

There are alternative ways, just like there are alternative ways to grow the economy without flooding the island with more people.

Let’s talk xenophobia

A common definition of xenophobia is the fear or hatred for foreigners and often translated into hostility and beating of foreigners. Singaporeans have been accused by Singaporeans, by the media and even by people in high places of being xenophobic. These people must have seen many foreigners being challenged or beaten up in this country by Singaporeans. Otherwise they would not be making such foolish statements as they will affect their credibility and as leaders of this country.
 

Let’s look at the facts.
 

1. Most taxi drivers are Singaporeans. Most taxi drivers are beaten up by foreigners.
 

2. Singaporeans are reported to be chased around by foreigners and beaten up by foreigners who have taken up jobs in the country.
 

3. Foreign companies here prefer to hire foreigners than Singaporeans with no violent protest from the Singaporeans.
 

4. Singapore companies prefer to hire foreigners as their CEOs and senior managers.
 

5. Singaporeans must pay $100 to enter the casinos. Foreigners can enter without paying.
 

6. There are more than 1 million foreigners in the island with a population of slightly more than 3 million. Foreigners find it easy to get a job than Singaporeans. Many Singaporean graduates are unemployed or replaced by foreigners. No protest.
 

7. Discriminatory advertisements for jobs specifically hiring foreigners and not Singaporeans have been a fair game for a long time.
 

8. In the recent rioting in little India, Singaporeans were the ones got beaten by foreigners. Singaporean police vehicles were torched. Singaporean police officers were hurt. Other than one drunken foreigner that died because of a traffic accident, not a 
single foreigner was beaten up by the Singaporeans.
 

9. Not a single Singaporean was involved in the rioting to beat up foreigners.
 

10. No foreigners have been beaten up by Singaporeans because they were foreigners.
 

11. Foreigner cyclists are often scolding and taunting Singaporeans and threatening to beat them on the roads for horning at them.
 

That’s it, from the above facts Singaporeans are definitely xenophobic and hate foreigners. It is so obvious. The media also said so, some politicians also said so. Some Singaporeans also said so. And the Singaporeans did not deny this. Thus this conclusion cannot be wrong. The Singaporeans must now reflect on themselves why they are xenophobic or why everyone is accusing them of being xenophobic.
 

They must be nicer to foreigners, and if they are beaten up by foreigners it must be their fault. If they lose their jobs to foreigners it must be that the foreigners are more talented and more deserving and qualified for the job. Singaporeans only have themselves to be blamed for being so xenophobic.
 

I have a Ph D from the University of DKW and an adjunct professor of BTH School of International Strategic Studies. DKW is short for Don’t Know Where and BTH means BehTahan.

12/12/2013

Singapore should learn from China how to deal with illegal expatriates from western countries

China has been rounding up foreigners especially ang mohs who have been sneaking into CHINA by the thousands to work illegally in the country. Singapore should follow the step taken by CHINA and do the same instead of having the colonial hang of coddling to them. Also in China, unruly expatriates are being arrested, fined and punished with jail terms before being deported. In Singapore it seems a lot of westerners especially American ruffians are getting away scot free with boarish rowdy behaviour towards our local citizens. Is the authority doing anything to protect Singaporeans or else why are these aggressive western ruffians behaving as if they own this island.

Below is an article from CHINA DAILY on how it deals with western expatriates who are nothing but ruffians who sneak into the country to work illegally.


Beijing to deport unruly expats

( chinadaily.com.cn ) Updated: 2013-12-11 21:56:04
A foreigner in Beijing has been given a 12-day detention and a fine of 6,500 yuan ($1,070) for traffic violations and illegal employment and will be deported along with his father after serving the term, said police on Wednesday.
The foreigner, whose nationality and name haven't been disclosed, hit a middle-aged Chinese woman at the Zuojiazhuang intersection in Chaoyang district when riding a scooter on Dec 2.
The woman suffered minor injuries and was sent to a nearby hospital, and the man agreed to pay her 1,800 yuan in compensation.
The man was also detained for 7 days and fined 1,500 yuan for other breaches of the traffic regulations, as during their investigation into the accident the police found the foreigner had neither a driving license nor a motorbike plate and he was carrying a passenger on a scooter.
Police also found that the man and his father were working illegally. So he was detained for another 5 days and fined 5,000 yuan; his father was detained for 14 days and fined 10,000 yuan. The company that illegally hired the pair fined up to 20,000 yuan.
Both the man and his father are to be deported on their release, the police said.
The police said expatriates in China should comply with the country's laws and regulations. Police protect their rights, but they will also keep lawful management of them and crack down on illegal behavior to maintain social order.

The dramatic runaway price increase of cylinder gases


                                Runaway price increase of cylinder gas and petrol
                                -------------------------------------------------------------------

Motorists would have noticed the creeping silent increase of petrol prices in petrol kiosks this year.  And now housewives have to worry about the sudden dramatic increase in prices of cylinder gases. Can you imagine just within a period of over a month a canister of 12.7KG CYLINDER GAS increase steeply by about ten dollars. Just around the 5th of november a 12.7KG CYLINDER GAS  cost twenty-nine dollars. It was increased to thirty-two dollars around 26th of November. Hardly half a month past it is now again increased  by four dollars to thirty-six dollars. And according to dealers the price may yet increase again. This quirk increase in prices within a short period of less than two months has a hard impact on the poor and the middle class citizens.

The people demand to know what is the underlying cause or causes of this sudden price increase. May be the government has something to say or explain about this price increase phenomina. The people are speculating that it is due to high ministers'pay , the  insane COEs, the illogical and indiscriminate  ERPs as well as the punishing GSTs. The impact is felt even harder because of the lesser earning power of the people which is caused by the mad influx of foreign work force that has not only depressed wages substantially but also result in unreasonable and unconscionable retrenchments of SINGAPOREANS.

THE GOVERNMENT needs to take immediate action to relieve the people's pain without further delay. When the people are driven financially against the wall the consequnces may be heavy and unprictable for there is always a price to pay for government's inaction.

EAGLES EYES.