The fairy tales of eternal economic growth

People are suffering, people are dying, entire ecosystems are dying, ‘We are in the beginning of a mass extinction and all you can talk about is money and fairy tales of eternal economic growth.’ Gretha Thunberg
 
The above quote is what this young girl said in her speech on Climate Change at the UN. Do they sound familiar? Anyone can relate to her words about economic growth? Who does not want economic growth? In this little island, everything is about economic growth, growth at all cost, because if you don’t have economic growth, how to pay million dollar salaries to the employees? And how to have easy economic growth? Grow the population by importing all the wildlife you can find to fill up every inch of earth on this island. When they are here, they need to have housing, services, food, cars, entertainments etc etc, ie they need to eat and consume goods and services. All these activities adds to one thing, economic growth!
 
But one problem, their activities would also lead to higher uses of plastic bags and plastic straws, and these are not good for climate change. So we must all work very hard to cut down use of plastic bags and plastic straws. Get it?
 
In Greta Thunberg’ speech she gave a scathing attack on world leaders for betraying the young people through a lack of action on climate change. She added. ‘You have stolen my dreams and my childhood through your empty words…The eyes of all future generations are upon you. And if you choose to fail us I say we will never forgive you.
 
How can the world leaders fail them when they are working so hard to provide better life for them through eternal economic growth? Is there a contradiction, is there a lie? Economic growth is the panacea of everything good in life, the more growth the better, never mind if it means stuffing 20m people in this little piece of rock. It is good.
 
When Adam and Eve were the only two living beans on earth, there is aplenty in everything, fresh air, food, green forests, no plastics, little waste and all the natural resources for the two beans to enjoy. Now the world’s population is 6b and growing because world leaders need more human beans to increase economic growth. Soon there will be 7b, 8b or more people sharing the earth, consuming all the resources, eating all the fishes in the ocean. Poisoning the ocean with plastic waste, nuclear waste etc etc. Temperature rising.
 
Not to worry, it would not happen to us. Don’t listen to this Greta Thunberg. She does not know how good economic growth is. You want your HDB flat to be worth $1m? If your answer is yes, you must want economic growth. You must want 10m, 20m people in this island. Please support the no holds bar immigration policy to bring in more and more people, then we can build more and more properties to house them, more shopping centres, more hawker centres and food courts, more reservoirs, more power stations….and more plastic bags.
 
A lot of serious thoughts have been put into this formula of more people equal more economic growth. No one can deny economic growth. Let’s go for it, Greta Thunberg or no Greta Thunberg. We know what is good for us, the residents of this little piece of rock. And we will share this piece of rock with more wildlife, the more the merrier.

Singapore needs a massive revamp of the income tax regime

The poor Singaporeans are the highest taxed individuals in Singapore in nett terms. Though many have been beguiled by the little income tax they are paying, many low income and no income Singaporeans are still subject to the regressive GST, taxing on everything that a Singaporean used and consumed. This is very unhealthy and discriminatory against the poor and low income Singaporeans. At 7% GST, poor Singaporeans, no income Singaporeans and low income Singaporeans are all taxed at 7% of their consumption or expenditure, with no exceptions.

If we were to consider the personal income tax system, with personal reliefs, earned income relief and other reliefs, anyone earning less than $30,000 annual income would practically pay $0 income tax. But this savings in income tax has been swallowed up by the 7% GST which effectively forms the based for personal income tax of everyone, young and old, working or not working.

On paper, any Singaporean earning $20,000 pa would not be subject to any income tax. The tax for the next $10,000 taxable income is $200 at 2%. If all reliefs and deductibles are included, a person earning between $40,000 to $50,000 would be taxed $200.

If the average income of Singaporeans is $3,000 pm, it would mean 50% of Singaporeans would be paying $200 or less in income tax. Maybe 60% would be paying $200 or less.  Imagine how much work and how many people are hired and paid to administer 50-60% of Singaporeans income tax submission and assessment?

Why not change the tax regime for Singaporeans earning $50,000 and below to be exempt from income tax? Why employed an army of tax personnel to monitor and collect $200 from a few of the 2m citizens? So many resources and manpower could be redeployed into more productive areas and a lot of savings in payroll.  After all, with GST, the people are already paying 7% personal tax in another form, and the pool of tax payers includes children, babies and retirees with no income but paying taxes.

The other area of main concern is not to tax indiscriminately, on essential and basic items and on children, education and medical services. These can be fine tuned to tax on the selected items and services. A one size fits all idiotic approach to catch everyone with no exceptions and compassion is negligence and a lazy attitude in public administration. The fine tuning would also make it less expensive for citizens versus foreigners when foreigners are a big part of our population and workforce.

With the uncontrolled and unchallenged lust to increase GST to 9%, the need to think deeply and thoroughly on how this might affect the less able citizens becomes more important. We don't pay millions for slipshod and careless policies that are convenient to apply but indiscriminate in hurting the well beings of the citizens. If there are so many mean people that think means testing is important and necessary, this principle must also apply to indiscriminate increase in GST.  Do the due diligence, put in more effort and think, use the so called million dollar brain or talent to show care for the people, especially those that would be adversely affected. Every dollar counts.

These are just a few thoughts on the need to revamp the tax regime instead of continuing the way it has been for so long. If the CPF can be changed and changed until it turns into not the people's money, for who's interest, why should not the tax regime be changed as well, to benefit the people that need to put up with it?

Foreign interference in internal affairs of a country

This has been on the lips on some politicians recently like it is a national threat. It is a national threat when interference is against a ruling govt but not the other way. And this hard truth is a historical truth. The ruling govt of a country would not want another country to interfere in what it is doing domestically or against its political rivals or citizens.
 
Should any citizen of Singapore dare to go to another country’s rulers to ask them to interfere with Singapore’s politics or domestic affairs, you can imagine what hell is like. In many countries, historically, this is treason, and the person involved is called a traitor. It is an unforgiveable crime against the state and people. There could be exceptions when a country is ruled by a rogue dictator or regime when a hapless people is forced to invite foreign assistance to overthrow a ruling rogue regime. However the difference between overthrowing a rogue regime and regime change because of foreign interference by foreign power is a very thin line.
 
The calling of a foreign power or leader to interfere in the domestic politics is happening today in the USA! Donald Trump is facing impeachment exactly for this crime. In the transcript of his telephone conversation with Ukraine President he was quoted to have asked him to investigate the son of Joe Biden, the leading democrat candidate to stand against him. While Trump has yet to be completely discharged from the accusation of having the Russians interfering in the presidential election that led to his Presidency, he is now caught with his pants down, inviting a foreign power to meddle with the next presidential election. The Americans could not take this act of treason and are mounting an inquiry that could lead to Trump’s impeachment.
 
The irony is that a few weeks’ back the American Congress was seen listening intensely to a bunch of traitors from Hong Kong inviting the Americans to interfere in the affairs of Hong Kong, China. The Americans are encouraging such acts of treasons against the govt of another country but would not tolerate such similar acts in their own country.
 
Would Singapore support the Hong Kong activists that went begging the Americans to interfere in their domestic affairs? How would the Singapore govt deal with such acts if they were Singaporeans and not Hongkongers ?

Singaporeans, a people numbed

All the signs of an impending GE is there. The PAP MPs and ministers are starting to be seen walking around to show their faces. The electoral boundaries are under reviewed. A few opposition parties are stirring and also been seen and heard. Cheng Bock is reported today to be walking around, all 29 constituencies. But there is something amiss. Where is the buzz? Any Singaporean talking about the GE? Any Singaporean getting excited that there is another chance to make a difference or a dent in the PAP armour?

Are there issues that are closed to the hearts of the Singaporeans that they want change or want to remove? Apparently no. Singaporeans are going about their lives as if nothing is happening or nothing is going to change. The govt continues to blare about raising transport fares and GST to help the people, a few months to a GE and confidently think that these are non issues. The govt also showed its report card on the increase in population to 5.7m and the increase in foreigners becoming citizens, and increase in PRs as if this is an achievement that the people welcomed. Any reaction from the people? Nil.

There is no more political issues in Singapore that Singaporeans are interested in. Perhaps they have accepted all the changes and just moving on in their lives. The insidious CECA with the flooding of people from India becomes a new way of life. The CPF savings being held forever with withdrawal date a moving target is just part and parcel of being a Singaporean. Losing jobs to 2.5m foreigners and accepting the fate of being replaced by them is another of those things.

Life is good in Singapore. Singaporeans are barely affected by any of the above. Singaporeans are all united behind the govt and supporting the govt in everything it is doing. So no problem or issue is there to bother them? Would the opposition parties be able to set an agenda for the people to want to go with them? Would there be any issue that is dear to the hearts of the Singaporeans that they want an opposition party to fight for them in the next GE?

I am trying to put my fingers on the pulse of Singaporeans but it seems that the pulse is not there, dead, numbed or boh chap? The coming GE is looking like a non event and the PAP is likely to walk over with the 4G leaders taking over the leadership as planned.

Am I holding the hand of a Singaporean or a foreigner turned Singaporean? There are so many of them here that you don't know who is who.  Turn around and everyone looks like a foreigner and also looking like a Singaporean.  The foreigners turned Singaporeans are having a great time and great life here, busy chasing their dreams. The Singaporeans are busy doing what, working to make ends meet or enjoying themselves with the wealth they have accumulated over their life time with many living in million dollar HDB flats and multi million dollar private properties that can be converted into cash to fund their life styles in their retirement, or to pass down to their children that do not need to work anymore?

Where is the buzz of a GE?No buzz, no issue? This is a wonderful state of affair for the PAP, the ruling govt.

Happy DBS employees

This is a picture of the happy long service employees of DBS Bank. The best bank in the world, also honoured recently by Hsien Loong for looking after the livelihood of its employees, especially the seniors that have been affected by job disruptions. These people would not be worried about losing their jobs or livelihood in DBS to foreigners waiting to replace them.

These are the happy and younger employees of DBS Bank, in Changi Business Park, not Chennai Business Park as some like to call it. They are the future of DBS Bank.  All having a great future in DBS Bank, the best employer in Singapore. Many are potential new citizens if not already citizens.