Desiring 10m pop is not a hunger pang

Liu Thai Ker ‘urges city planners to adopt a long term perspective to find solutions for the nation’s requirement to house the 10 million…“The voices that I hear from social circles, newspapers, is to look at limitations first. ‘We don’t have land, so how can we look at population?’ If that’s the case, would people say since we don’t have money, we don’t eat tonight? But eating is the priority.”
 
What a stupid analogy! Would one die from not having 10m pop? What kind of stupid comparison? Do we need 10m pop? Why is there an urge to want 10m pop? We know that 10m pop will come with 10m problems. Why do we want or desire to have 10m problems when we have a choice not to live with the problems?
 
Are we asking for trouble, desiring for more problems so that we can prepare for it? Do we have other options? 10m is not an irresistible sexpot that is a must have by lusty old men. 10m pop is an excruciating pain in the arse. It is not just about building more flats, more roads, more trains and car parks and infrastructure. It is about more electricity and power, more water, more schools, hospitals, more food, more mouths to feed, more jobs to create, more human problems, more social problems and diseases and more people to live and to die. The problem is compounded when all these factors work against one another and work together. There would be the race and religion problems, the rich and poor divide, the class struggles. The bigger the population, the more diverse and heterogenous the pop, the more complex and complicated things would be. And I am only scratching the surface of these known and many unknown problems.
 
A simple mind like an architect would not be able to perceive the consequences and permutations of the problems that would be created. Liu Thai Ker should not overrate himself that he has the solution and could see it all. He did not see the problems of 5m population today for sure. Even a multi disciplinary team of experts would not be able to tell with any accuracy what it would be like.
 
What is so sexy about having 10m pop that die die must have? For those thinking green, it is wasteful thoughts, consuming and wasting natural resources. What the fuck does one gain by building every square inch of land available to stuff more people into it? Is that progress? Is that necessary? Is that a life and death option? Why ask for trouble when there is no need for it?
 
The simple question, What for? Has any seen the game when they tried to stuff as many bodies as possible into a Mini Cooper?

Kopi Level - Blue, thank you.

SFP in AMK GRC, a master stroke

I read this somewhere that the SFP is walking around AMK. First they were spotted in Tanjong Pagar and now Ang Mo Kio. Tan Jee Say sure knows where are the vital points and where to make the strategic moves that would make a difference. These two moves are so unnerving that I have read IBs trying to suggest that the SFP is the shadow PAP and either party wins will not make any difference.  Really, what if the SFP wins AMK GRC? What is going to happen to Hsien Loong? This point itself is going to give many the shivers, Hsien Loong included.
 
If SFP were to be successful in taking Tanjong Pagar and Ang Mo Kio, it would literary turn the table and put PAP in disarray. Losing these two strongholds would be most upsetting. And losing Hsien Loong would turn the party topsy turvy. The succession planning is for this to happen in 10 years time and the touted successor in Chan Chun Sing would not be ready in such an eventuality.
 
It just cannot be allowed to happen and PAP would do everything it can to prevent any party to launch a serious assault at AMK. Tanjong Pagar with LKY retiring may be allowed to go. It is already a goner anyway. No way would PAP allow AMK to go with Hsien Loong in the basket.
 
In the last few GEs, the token force put up by the opposition in AMK were non events and Hsien Loong and all his lieutenants could have the comfort of sitting behind the planning tables like generals deploying their forces in cool comfort, with no imminent threat to their seats. With the SFP putting up a serious team to take AMK, not only Hsien Loong would be working through the wee hours and losing sleep, his generals would have sleepless night too, trying to boost up the defences in AMK. They cannot let it fall. They cannot let Hsien Loong fall.
 
In one bold move, the whole PAP camp is startled and scrambling for cover. How to deal with the new situation when the HQ becomes the main target? I think Hsien Loong and his lieutenants would not have the luxury to move from one rally to another without having any concern to watch their backs like before. They must be casting their glances behind all the time to make sure SFP does not succeed. This will give room and space for the other parties to make their moves to take their targets.
 
What a game changer for SFP to make these two moves! They are like the right and left flanking attacks that changed the whole battlefield with the regrouping of enemy forces to protect the HQ and to keep the king secure. The king piece in the chess board cannot fall or it would be checkmate.

Kopi Level - Blue, thank you.

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