If PAP loses, Singapore will be in deep trouble?

This is what Hsien Loong said. If PAP loses in the next GE, Singapore will be in deep trouble. How could that be? Is Singapore a fragile 3rd world country run by tin pot dictator that once the dictator loses power the country would turn into a state of anarchy, everything collapses? What would happen to our top class civil service? What would happen to our armed forces? What would happen to our men in blue? All run away or all fighting to be the next dictator?
 
Come of it. We are 1st world remember? We are a rule by law country, with good systems and good civil servants and professional uniformed services to provide the continuity when a political party loses its power and a new party takes over. We are a 1st world democracy right? Or we are a fake democracy, a 3rd world country pretending to be 1st world and everything depending on a 3rd world dictator? Cannot be right?
 
The Philippines and Indonesia were less developed than us. What happened when Marcos fled? What happened when Suharto fell from power? Did both countries, still developing in status, fell into pieces, the end? No right? The countries continued as if nothing had happened. You mean Singapore is so fragile than the Philippines and Indonesia of yesteryears?
 
Wolf! wolf! Anyone indulging in crying wolf? Anyone wants to bet? I bet Singapore will continue to exist even if PAP is trounced in the next GE. It must be. How can Singapore collapse just because 80 people who claimed to be super talents lost an election? You mean the island does not have more than 80 people that are more talented, more capable, committed and dedicated to run this island? With my eyes closed I will say there are thousands of Singaporeans capable, or more capable, to run this island without the PAP, without the boys and girls.
 
30 years ago, the mantra was that a 5 rm point block flat had enough talents to run this island. Today we must have thousands of talented people that are capable to run this island. Why would Hsien Loong think otherwise? What did he know that we don’t know that Singapore will be in deep trouble? Honestly I can’t think of anything that would put Singapore in deep trouble if PAP lost the right to rule this island. Yes I admit I am naïve and do not know what is going on, what are the bigger scheme of things.

Kopi Level - Green

More Singaporean bashings by rogue foreigners

Sinkies must be thankful for the pleasure of being bashed by rogue foreigners right in the heart of their country. Or shall I say rogue foreigners should be grateful for the privilege of being invited into this island to bash Sinkies as a past time, and the cost is really nothing, maybe a few thousand dollars in fine, and the pleasure they would say, is mine?
 
In the mypaper today, 3 rogue foreigners were in court for bashing cabbies. Our cabbies used to be united and organized to deal with such rogues but today they just let themselves to be beaten and would not retaliate. Maybe hitting back would get them into bigger trouble with the law. How would they dare to hit back at our darling foreigners?
 
Norwegian Arne Corneliussen was charged for two counts of voluntarily causing hurt to a Sinkie cabbie. Michael Michaelidis, a French rogue, pulled the hand brake of a cab causing it to spin and crashed. A Swede rogue, Andrea Michel Blomqvist, punched a 59 year old Sinkie several times on the head.
These rogues must be really having a great time in Sin City, paid good money, party everyday until it became a boredom and needed more thrills. And bullying and bashing Sinkies become a great past time.
 
Would there be a govt that would protect the poor and helpless Sinkies, small built, old and feeble against these giant rogues? It may take another 30 years for any real hard measures to be taken. Hopefully the next govt will be more protective of Sinkies instead of rogue foreigners and make caning compulsory for any foreign rogue that hit a Sinkie, and compulsory jail sentence as well. Until then, the party will go on. What is a few thousand dollars earned from the daft Sinkies in Sinkie land to beat up Sinkies?
 
Can Sinkies look forward to a better life, free from physical harm by rogue foreigners? The daft cab drivers must be fearing for their lives everytime they picked up a foreigner. But what to do, the foreigners are the best people who tipped them well. To make a living they just have to take the risk and swallow their pride if there is still any left.

Kopi Level - Green

Dr Mahathir: What’s next, a white PM?

This was the title of a report in the Today paper. Mahathir was angry with the stupid UMNO leaders for hiring an angmo to save the ailing MAS. He questioned whether there is any more intelligent Malaysians or Malays left to turn the airline around. If everything has to be solved by foreigners, what about a white PM? Are the whites really smarter or because the silly Asians gave them all the opportunities to be trained on the jobs and depriving their own kind to be trained and to gain experience in top jobs?
 
“I am worried, if we do not believe in ourselves, one day when we need a Prime Minister, we can get a white man because he is ‘smarter’ than us….If people want to get angry(with my comments), so be it. That’s my opinion.”
 
In the same article ‘Mahathir also expressed worry about an increasing distrust of local expertise in important positions…We have many talents in this country. But if they want consultants, they call in foreigners. Even directors are foreigners.’ He also said, ‘the country became prosperous after gaining independence because of the efforts of local leaders. “I don’t think Malaysians are stupid. During the British occupation, we were a poor and backward country. We became rich and developed after independence, led by Malaysians,” he said.
 
I am wondering if Mahathir was taking a dig at Malaysia’s stupidity or sneering at Singapore. What he said is everything about the developments in Singapore. We have confused national responsibility with commercial responsibility and allowed foreigners to take charge in strategic areas like IT, university education, finance and soon it will be the legal system. A white PM will happen faster here than in Malaysia. The UMNO may be stupid, but they have the ultra nationalists to prevent them from selling out their country. In Singapore, once a govt becomes stupid, there will be no ultra nationalist to stop them from hiring a foreigner as PM and selling this country to foreigners. Any ultra nationalist or patriot would likely to be behind bars when the time comes.
 
Thank you Mahathir, for the subtle warning and for saying the right thing. We are stupid and that is absolutely true. You can see it everywhere. The cab drivers will confirm this if you have any doubts. The unemployed PMEs would have many testimonies to vouch for it.

Kopi Level - Green

Hsien Loong – next GE a deadly serious fight for Singapore’s future

I quote Neo Chai Chin’s first paragraph in the front page of Today on the PAP60 Rally dated 8 Dec. ‘The Republic’s future and society are at stake in the next General Election because it will be about who forms the Govt and not merely how many seats the Opposition captures…said Hsien Loong’. I agree that this is a serious fight but I have a slightly different take on this. Yes it is a deadly ‘live or die’ fight for the PAP. For the Singaporeans, it is a fight for the future of their children and grandchildren. I think the foreigners will also be betting their future on this GE. They must be betting their future for a PAP win.
 
Hsien Loong added, ‘A great deal is at stake, comrades. Our future is at stake because if we do not remain a nation of opportunity, our children will have no future…If PAP fails, Singapore is in deep trouble…’ I would like Hsien Loong to clarify if the ‘Our future’ is about the future of his comrades or about the future of Singaporeans. What do you think?
 
I think Hsien Loong meant this to be about Singaporean and the future of the children of Singaporeans. As for the part Singapore will be in deep trouble if PAP fails, how so, no one else can run this country? I beg to differ.
 
There are quite a few interesting statements from the media like ‘this will be the last time a PAP CEC will be elected’, ‘eventually there’ll will be no more PAP to check’, and ‘That will be the last “check” , because it will be checkmate.’
 
In the same article, the concluding paragraph has a quote by Christopher De Souza, ‘It’s very easy to be a people’s party or a party for the people and speak about ideas, all the more to translate those ideas into action.’ What was Christopher trying to say by not saying? Can anyone figure out?
 
So many pages of the msm have been devoted to this rally. Even the TV has been telecasting the speech by Hsien Loong over and over again. There are many things to digest, many good things, many right things and many things that are not so clear. Many people would read the speech with different ideas.
 
What I like about is the repetition of opportunities for Singaporeans and the children of Singaporeans. ‘This is a place where our children can dream big, achieve their aspirations and live well in Singapore.’ I really hope so. I really hope so. I have children and grandchildren, and I want them to be the beneficiary of their forefathers’ blood, sweat and tears and not to be kicked aside in favour of darling foreigners, clever foreigners.
 
Who would the people vote to protect the future of their children and grandchildren?

Kopi Level - Blue, thank you

Comments about SGX uncalled for?

I have heard a lot about this Vincent Khoo over the last couple of weeks and of his numerous letters on SGX and remisiers in the main media. He must have written something ‘right’ to get so much publicity and attention by the media. I have not met him or read any of his ‘renowned’ articles until this morning. I would expect the article to be just as objective and logical for it to be accepted for print in the main media. Although the rankings of our media are not too flattering, topping the list from the bottom up, there must still be some sensible guys to publish non political articles that are deserving and of some quality, at least from the point of logic and objectivity.
 
The first comment by Vincent Khoo this morning is that SGX did not suffer a breakdown. It just decided to close down the exchange for the whole morning. What is a breakdown is subject to different interpretations. The official reason was that SGX was downloading a new programme overnight and some users would need some time to reconcile some of the trades. So SGX decided to close down a regional market, no trading for the whole morning. Whether this is an acceptable practice for a big regional market was not discussed.
Assuming that a major stock market can suka suka close down for whatever reasons it deems fit, can this logic be applied to other organizations like the trains, the TV stations, telecoms or whatever when they feel like it? Or can we see SGX closing down more frequently, not because of breakdowns or system maintenance? Is this the new normal?
 
The next point Vincent chastised the remisiers for is claiming loss of business because of shorter trading hours and also the excuse for the return of a lunch break by extrapolation of trading hours. More trading hours more business and vice versa. To Vincent this is illogical, short of pure heresy. He forgot that the SGX used the same reason to justify for the cancellation of the lunch break. No lunch break means longer trading hours, means increasing in trading and more commission. Is Vincent also saying that the SGX was silly for using this stupid logic?
 
His third point is to quote a remisier claiming to have 50 to 100 trades in the early morning. So remisiers not doing well must learn from this remisier. Is this a sensible suggestion? I just feel like saying don’t talk cock. A swallow does not make a summer. Using statistics to lie, selective picking of statistics to lie, is not very clever. To be fair and objective, one has to use the full set of statistics available to come out with a sensible story. Cherry picking is only for one out to deceive.
 
If one or two remisiers is suffering from poor business, it is reasonable to say they may be the problem though not necessary so. If 70 or 80 percent of the remisiers are suffering from low business, something is obviously wrong. Even if Vincent Khoo is doing exceptionally well, it does not speak for the whole industry. Why doesn’t he quote Peter Lim and say every remisier must be making millions like Peter Lim, otherwise the remisier is underperforming? There are always exceptions and exceptions are exceptions and should not be used as the norm.
 
I am still puzzled why the msm gave this Vincent Khoo so much space to print his one sided and skewed articles? Is his thinking process that logical? Or do the editors of the msm think the articles are logically argued and deserving to be in print?
 
The most important point is whether a regional bourse can suka suka close down its operation whenever it feels like it and be accepted as normal. How many idiots out there think that this is acceptable? I hope SMRT would not stop the train services when it feels like it for whatever reasons. Hsien Loong said the govt must set the standard. Is this the kind of standard for SGX?
 
Comments against SGX for two stoppages uncalled for? What kind of standard are we talking about? Are we another 3rd world city with a 3rd world stock exchange? I think 3rd world stock exchanges also did not have so frequent downtime.

Kopi Level - Blue, thank you.