No normal growth for Singapore economy

There is this article in the TRE by a blogger called 'Jialut Liao' with the title 'Singapore economy will never have growth again'. Let me quote the first paragraph.

The economics headlines for Singapore have been bad. The predictions for 2017 are gloomy. Still… i have this nagging feeling that we are not getting the full picture ( or our Gov is not telling the whole truth)....

I agree that we are not getting the full picture and the govt is not telling the whole truth. So let me enlighten the readers on the whole truth and the exceptional strength of our economy. Look at the positives, the most important point is that Singapore has an exceptional govt, some called it abnormal govt because they were paid abnormally. But this is really Singapore's trump card, all the aces in the hand. Our govt are made up of very exceptionally talented men and women and they are worth every cent they are being paid. And everyone is paid more than the President of the USA, including junior ministers. If you care to dig deeper, many ordinary MPs are also earning more than the President of the USA. And if you know their real take home pay, you will faint, shock to know how talented they are. This is the quality and depth of talents that Singapore has.

With this exceptional and abnormal govt, you cannot expect normal growth but exceptional and abnormal growth for Singapore. I am sure with this little truth all Singaporeans can now sleep in peace. The ministers can.

And this is not all, we have the best of everything, the best school system and universities that always produced straight As students and no failures or unmentionable small number of failures. In other words our education system has no wastage, producing the best workers and most employable workers in the world. We even have excess of these talents to spread to the world. And this is real serious, the most talented and productive workers that are in demand all over the world, maybe not here.

We have the best infrastructure, public services, hospitals, transportation, best and most efficient sea port and airport. We have the best shopping centres and food paradise. Singapore has everything good here, everything is happening in Singapore. And we can splurge on anything we want, F1, Youth Olympic, miracle gardens, paying hundreds of millions for foreigners to run our top universities, maybe spend a few billions to buy F35s, the most expensive warplanes in the world. Singapore could just stop splurging on these luxuries and fantasies, it could easily save hundreds of millions for abnormal growth.

The slight slow down in the economy has nothing to worry about. We have millions of cheap labour from the neighbouring countries that came here to create more jobs for Singaporeans. And if the economy expands, we can import more, and the economy is expanding and our target is 6.9m and more, some say 10m. We have not reached our full potential yet. Singapore can sign more CECAs to bring in more talents to boost the economy. We still have a lot of land to build flats and shopping centres and food courts. If need be we can have a few more casinos.

Wait for the completion of the 4th and 5th international airports, the Jewel, and the world's biggest port in Tuas. I could go on and on. Singapore's advantages and strength are unlimited. And if things need a little boosts, just raise the salaries of the leaders to spur them to work even harder and max their super talented skills.

Yes, with exceptional and abnormal talents in charge, Singapore will not have normal growth, but exceptional and abnormal growth. Maybe there will be more 15% GDP growth. And I have not spoken about our secret weapon, the huge reserves that are being invested wisely in everything all over the world, zealously guarded by the most talented president in the world, and giving abnormal returns annually, I think better than Warren Buffet's fund.

Sleep well Singaporeans, you are in good hands. Don't listen to rumours and doomsayers.

Obama's Christmas present for the PLO

After years of protecting the Israelis and giving them a licence to kill and do anything they want against the Palestinians, Obama decided to stop the blank cheque for violence and crimes against the Palestinians. Despite the protest and pressure from Israel and Donald Trump, the Nobel Peace Prize winner gave the Palestinians a last minute Christmas present in his dying days in the White House. Obama ordered his US representative in the Security Council to abstain instead of casting its veto power to block the resolution to stop the Israelis from occupying territories seized from the Palestinians. While the fools in the UN and the rest of the world clapped as if God has turned the Americans into angels for Christmas, the Americans have been the devil behind all the Israeli acts and killings against the Palestinians for decades. And this small act could be the flash in the pan from the man know as the flash in the pan. All things would be back to normal when Trump sits in the White House and no resolution against the Israelis would be passed in the UN as before.

The resolution was unanimously passed by the remaining 14 Security Council members ordering Israel to return the occupied land to the Palestinian but in reality would be just another pyrrhic victory or paper victory at most. Israel immediately condemned the resolution and would not abide by it. And who is there to implement the resolution if the US act dumb? No country in the world would be able to evict the Israelis from the occupied Palestinian land and it is as good as an empty victory and Obama knew that this is just another American farce.

The UN Security Council resolution is not only legal and binding, it is a ruling from the world body, unlike the NOT UN backed Tribunal in The Hague. The rulings on the South China Sea by the kangaroo court in The Hague was anything but legal and binding compare to the UN resolution. So, would there be countries carrying a loudspeaker to tell the Israelis to abide by the UN Security Council resolutions?

This UN resolution is vital to the interest of small states that need the protection of the UN or they could lose their territories through conquest and occupation by foreign military forces. Small countries must stand up to defend this rulings for their own good. Aggressive military forces like the Israelis and the Americans must be made to obey the rule of law. Supporting this ruling is supporting a sound principle that would protect the interest of small states.

Merry Christmas to the Palestinians and everyone celebrating Christmas in this small state that needs the protection of the rule of law and high principles of international relations.

Let me start by asking the Israelis to abide by the UN Security Council resolution that is legal and binding. The Israelis must follow the rule of law.

Honour is priceless

I wanted to take a dig at Donald Trump and his appointees for diminishing their dignity by accepting incredibly low monetary rewards when they take up their posts on 20 Jan 17. Trump has declined his presidential salary which understandably is worth less than a peanut and instead opt to take a token pay of US$1. Some may find this action stupid, demeaning and insulting the great office of the Presidency of the USA. How can the responsibility and power of the highest and most important office in the world be worth US$1, or how could Donald Trump be worth US$1? He is worth even less than our cleaners. What kind of dignity is he going to garner, what kind of respect is he going to get when he met up with other heads of state and govt or with business leaders that earn in the millions? would Trump feel undignified, ashamed of his low pay, a meagre US$1? I am so tempted to buy him kopi if he visits Singapore. Poor chap, how could he afford Starbucks?

And his team of cabinet secretaries are mostly billionaires and multimillionaires. Take the CEO of Exxon Mobil, Rex Tillerson who has accepted the post of Secretary of State, our equivalent of Foreign Minister. Tillerson is being paid tens of milllions by Exxon but would suffer a huge pay cut in his new appointment, maybe getting something less than US$200k! He is just as insane as Trump to give up his millions, like all the other milllionaire appointees, to become political leaders. Why would these men and women willingly and honourably accept such a huge pay cut without claiming how much they have to sacrifice for the country? And they would have to face greater challenges in their new jobs, one of which is how to adjust their lifestyle with so little pay, how their family members would have to suffer for their bad decisions.

The only answer that I can think of is the silly concept of honour. These men and women are going to serve their country and see that as a great honour that is worth more than anything in monetary terms. Honour is priceless, even if they have to lose a lot of dignity for have a low pay. Yes, honour to some people may be just a useless aspiration that would not bring food on the table. But to these men and women, honour is everything they live for. They would not be caught talking foolishly about how great a sacrifice they have made for the loss of their income, ie money.

Honour cannot be measured by money alone. Honour is simply honour, priceless. It is something that either you have it or you don't. Which is more important, priceless honour or dignity that can be bought by money?

Shall I say dignity is more important than honour?

China - From friend to foe

Lee Kuan Yew spent half his lifetime building, cultivating and developed a special relationship with China. It took less than two years of his passing and China is now more a foe than a friend. Dunno who to thank for this sorry state of affair. It is definitely not Singapore's fault, not the MFA's fault, Singapore has done nothing to China or against China to cause this. Vivian could even said he can sleep well, with no prick of conscience. Not sure about Hsien Loong but he has been very happy going about doing his things without having to say a word about the deteriorating relationship with China.

This is a queer case of stupidity in diplmacy. It is either the Chinese are so stupid that they are angry with Singapore when Singapore did not do anything to badmouth China, to hurt China or to undermine China's core interests. Or the Singapore side is so stupid that they have done all the things against the interests of China but has no clue that they were against China. The latter is really quite frightening. It is worst than the Emperor and his new clothes. It is someone having diarrhoea without knowing it and happily walking around with the stench of shit but could not smell a thing.

The Terrex Incident has just started and who knows how long it will be dragged on and how serious it could turn out when more things were revealed. And before one could say let's move on, 20 DBS staff in Hong Kong have been arrested for breaches to good conduct and banking practices. They have violated the law for releasing confidential data of their clients. Has this got anything to do with the declining relations with China? Or is it just a coincidence, nothing to worry about. No one needs to lose any sleep.

The special relationship and access Lee Kuan Yew had with China is now passe. And it also means the special relationship Singapore enjoyed with China is also history. No western leaders would not be able to call on the Oracle to learn a few wisdom in dealing with China. Out line to China is cut, dead, no one is going to pick up the phone on the China end.

How did we do it so quickly after one and a half years after Lee Kuan Yew's death? All his good work and effort have gone to waste. There is no turning back, at least not under this govt. Singapore still thinking it can ride on the Chinese growth engine, to bid for projects in the OBOR big scheme of things? Would any minister think he or she would be invited to Beijing after this diplomacy mess?

Life goes on, nothing really happened, Singapore is still China's good friend or China is still Singapore's good friend. Singapore did not poke at China. Either the Chinese are so dumb that they did not know they were being poked or the people doing the poking are so daft that they did not know they were poking and poking at China. What insanity!

The vicious cycle of the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed

Singapore has had 50 years of good fortune, with good leaders in the past planting the right trees to provide shade and bearing fruits for today's generation to benefit. The regional countries were not so fortunate and many of their people were unemployed or underemployed, ie unemployable for one reason or another. But they were lucky that they saw a rainbow with a pot of gold at the other end. And the rainbows all ended up in Singapore.

 

So all the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed took a flight to find their rainbow's ends and came to Singapore. The Singapore govt was and is very generous and employed all the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed of neighbouring and far off countries. Millions of jobs were given to these unemployable, underemployed and unemployed.

 

What the govt did not plan for is the creation of a Singaporean class of unemployable, underemployed and unemployed in the process. As time goes by, with the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed of other countries flooding here, the number of Singaporean unemployable, underemployed and unemployed increases proportionally. So the govt do the same thing, tell the Singaporean unemployable, underemployed and unemployed to go overseas to look for jobs like the foreign unemployable, underemployed and unemployed did by coming here. The solution looks so simple and neat. The unemployable, underemployed and unemployed can easily go overseas to find better employment and Singaporean unemployable, underemployed and unemployed should do the same and should not have any problem.

 

Unfortunately things are not that simple and straight forward. There are many obvious reasons, the govts of other countries are not so talented to know that foreign talents are good for them and their economies. They also did not have so many jobs to offer to the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed from Singapore, and they have many other good reasons not to do so.

 

So, while Singapore happily goes about hiring the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed of other countries, the Singaporean unemployable, underemployed and unemployed, though much more talented and well qualified and full of experience have no takers. The end result, Singapore ended up employing other countries' unemployable, underemployed and unemployed, but no one wants to employ Singapore's unemployable, underemployed and unemployed.

 

It was supposed to be a virtuous cycle, we take other countries' unemployable, underemployed and unemployed and other countries should be taking our unemployable, underemployed and unemployed. The realities did not turn out the way it was expected. If it does, it would just be a vicious cycle where we give better paying jobs, good jobs to the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed of other countries and do not mind them giving lower paying jobs to our unemployable, underemployed and unemployed. The end result is that it is a one way traffic. Singapore ended up providing all the good and high paying jobs to foreigners that were unemployable, underemployed and unemployed in their countries, but not to Singaporeans. The unemployable, underemployed and unemployed did not end up with anything but remain the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed Singaporeans..

 

A vicious cycle where Singapore exchanges its unemployable, underemployed and unemployed for the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed of other countries is already bad enough. Now it is worse, the other countries did not want our unemployable, underemployed and unemployed.

 

What a sick joke. And Singapore even prepares and trains its unemployable, underemployed and unemployed to accept lower paying jobs, lower level jobs, and cheap currencies and a less hospitable environment and lower quality of life style to work overseas, to replace the unemployable, underemployed and unemployed who came to Singapore to work in better paying jobs, strong currency and a better environment and better quality of life.

 

Whose silly formula is this? Or whose clever idea is this?