5/06/2025

Trump shouts but not knowing what's next to do

This is the way the USA and India works. Lots of gloating, but nothing gets done or started or even planned for years earlier. It is the same with the mantra of manufacturing being reshored to the USA with massive job creations expected, which those tariffs are supposed to do. It is all an illusion. Putting the cart before the horse is not going to make things move forward fast enough to provide any semblance of the ability to solve the problem of empty shelves.

Before looking at the logistics of manufacturing returning to the USA, Trump has done nothing to prepare the ground first, which is to start building those factories, training the workers, sourcing for raw materials and refining logistics, and not just building them in the air and thinking this is how it works. Which is why the USA is now caught in a bind. Chinese products are being embargoed from entering the USA, while no alternatives are being provided to USA citizens. What makes it worse is the tariff issues with Canada and Mexico, which could have at least mitigated the supply problem somewhat, although not able to provide the capacity that China does anyway. The result is going to be empty shelves and shortages of everything. Panic buying is causing problems that could be delayed or mitigated with stockpiling earlier but not solving the problem in the longer term.

Other than talking about Chinese products not finding its way into retail stores, the other self-foot-shooting mistake made was the deportation of undocumented migrants, the backbone of the USA agricultural sector. These are the people doing the back-breaking jobs of planting, harvesting and bringing the products to supermarkets. Without them, food security is also becoming a big problem in the USA, which has not been well discussed in the same way as the problems associated with tariffs against China and everyone else. Going forward, with farmers going out of business, food security is going to be a problem for the USA, which is something really unexpected for a country that was a net food exporter to China and other countries for decades. Now those farmers that are left are unsure what to plant for next season that may make or break them. For them, the future looks bleak.


Anonymous

5/05/2025

GE2025 - Lawrence Wong led PAP to victory with bigger majority

 GE2025 came and gone. It was not expected to be dramatic, and it turned out that way with PAP and the opposition retaining the same number of seats in Parliament. The smaller opposition parties were routed, and they need to rethink their strategies and relevance in future GEs. They have failed to appreciate the shifting demography and higher expectations of a sophisticated and better educated electorate. Sending any team to contest will not do. This is best reflected in the 4 corner fight in Tampines GRC. PAP was expected to coast in comfortably but managed only 52%. Surprisingly the voters threw in all they have for WP with 47% of the votes and totally ignored the two opposition parties with both getting less than 1% of the vote. Wipe out to oblivion.

I thought Cheng Bock and Mun Wai would give Desmond Lee a good fight in West Coast Jurong GRC. Desmond's team won 60% against the strongest team from the PSP. This 60% is big as the PSP is putting their best bet in the race, as good as the 70% plus win in other GRCs. This win would secure Desmond's position and team in West Coast Jurong for good. Cheng Bock is unlikely to contest in the next GE. 

SDP's big gun Paul Tambyah also did not make must impact in Bukit Panjang with only 38%, much lower than expected against an average PAP candidate. What to my surprise is Chee Soon Juan's 47% in Sembawang West. Whew, he came close to become a NMP. That would be the biggest surprise in this GE and a nightmare for the PAP in Parliament.

PAP's big win could likely be contributed by the handouts and vouchers to the people over the years, especially to the seniors that were spared from selling tissue papers in hawker centres and MRT stations. More work needs to be done to support the seniors and the average Singaporeans in the face of rising cost of living and ever increasing taxes and fees. Lawrence Wong would have to come out with a clear plan to provide assistance in a more systematic and sustainable way than ad hoc issuing of vouchers going forward. The assistance, grants and vouchers must be sufficient and meaningful to offset the rising cost of living affecting the people.

Basic bread and butter issues would loom large in the coming years. And pressing issues like employment and the big presence of foreigners taking over good jobs from Singaporeans would continue to bug the people and a big job cut out for the PAP.

And there is this big tariff war going on with the rogue American regime throwing its weight around, bullying small states like Singapore, threatening wars of all kinds, turning the world upside down. It would be tough for Singapore to navigate to safer waters, to steer clear of being a crony state of the Americans without offending other ASEAN members. The rogue American regime is dividing the world into the US and the rest and forcing small states like Singapore to choose sides.  Actually worse than that. It is America first and to hell with the rest of the world.

Sticking to the old formula of being on the American side is now not looking good. Staying neutral is not easy, especially with the pro American Anglophiles still a majority in the govt. This would be a big test for Lawrence Wong, to take Singapore ahead to the best interests of Singapore and not bowed to the pressure of pro American Anglophiles.

A new chapter is starting with a new PM with a new mandate to chart a new course for Singapore in a turbulent world threatened by the rogues in Washington.


China is not fighting the evil American Empire, but blocking and defending

 The western narrative is always about America and China at war, both equally to blame in a contest for hegemony. The truth, it is America that is attacking China every day, throwing punches, sanctions, tariffs trade wars, coercing their allies and the rest of the world to isolating and contain China, to stop China's growth. They are blaming China for this American war for dominance and hegemony when China is an innocent party, a victim of American aggression. Call a spade a spade. It is the evil American Empire that started all the wars and solely to be blamed.

No, China is not fighting the Americans, not challenging the Americans for world hegemony. China is for a multipolar world, as seen by its participation in BRICS. China did not start any of these wars. China is the victim, the punching bag of the American terrorists. China is just defending and warding off the blows from the American gangsters. It is very mischievous and malicious to put China in the same category as rogue America. Stop blaming and slandering China.

The western media and the American propaganda machine have been demonishing China as a so called threat to take over the world. It is the Americans that want to take over the world. Everything China did is wrong, is bad, is a threat. China selling cheap and quality goods to the Americans is a threat. China's growth as a rich and powerful economy is a threat. China giving aid, building infrastructure, ports, highways and high speed trains are threats. China as the top trading partners of the world is a threat. China's BRI is a threat, a debt trap.

Actually, Xi proposed to the Americans, to John Kerry, that China and the US can work together in the BRI project in 2013 before it was announced to the world. This is now being disclosed by the former Chairman of Goldman Sach. John Kerry also agreed it was a good idea. The two superpowers working together to build roads, railways and ports to connect the world for trade. Obama turned it down at once. No need to consider, no cooperation with China. Then the evil Americans started their malicious narratives to smear the BRI project. They even forbid western countries to participate in the BRI. China was open to all western countries to be joint partners in the BRI. But all have to stay away because of the objection and coercion of the evil Americans. The Americans chose not to participate and coerced all their allies and cronies not to participate.

The world would greatly benefit from the participation of the Americans and the western countries, including Japan. The evil and wicked intention of the American terrorists is now slapping them right in their faces. Now they are left out in the cold, can only cry foul, blow hot and cold, while more than 150 countries of the world are in the BRI. And the BRI is a huge success and participants are now starting to reap the benefits of this giant international project as all the parts are mostly completed and coming to fruition. Poor America and the western states did not benefit a bit from the construction of all the infrastructure, which turned out to be a big blessing, as the cost would have been very high using western companies and technologies.

The BRI is not a threat but a great blessing and a win win project for the rest of the world. All the ports, roads and railways are the properties of the respective participating countries, built inside their countries, controlled by them, and would serve their national interests for decades and centuries.

Stop the lie that China is at war with the Americans, fighting the Americans. The devil is the evil American Empire that is starting all the wars and aggression against China. Period.

US burning bridges, China building bridges

It has been reported that some Western businesses are weighing a return to Russia, after pulling out after the Ukraine War started, forced by the USA administration and its Western allies. There are political hurdles to overcome, and sorry to say, their seat in Russia have now been taken by Russian entrepreneurs and other foreign investors from China. Moving back and winning back market share is out of the question.
The Trump administration is now forcing big financial institutions to move out of China and not providing financial services to Chinese businesses. The USA has already forced the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to act against China by ending loans to China. China should end its membership of the ADB and concentrate resources in expanding the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). ADB and AIIB are both doing the exact same thing, if I am not wrong.

This pulling out of USA's financially related entities from China will also end up just like what happened to businesses moving out of Russia earlier and trying to find a way back later on. China is still an expanding manufacturing hub in new growth sectors and a market that some cannot do without. Their seat will also be taken the moment they move out. Complete decoupling is going to be a done deal, and China is not prioritizing its dependence on USA anymore. The world is much bigger than the USA alone unlike the past, and the USA is not the only country that others have to trade with. The Chinese market will forever be gone for USA investors after financial decoupling takes place.

Having said that, the Chinese market is also gone forever for USA farmers and is not going to come back, even if relations go back to normal. China has already found alternative sources of agricultural products - from Brazil, Argentina, Russia and other BRICS countries coming on-line like Indonesia, now a BRICS member with Malaysia and Thailand admitted partners and potential members. China is not going to renege on its commitments to those BRICS countries, knowing the USA is not to be trusted.

While the USA is busy cutting off co-operation with allies, China is building more bridges to cushion the blows from the tariffs and sanctions. Who is going to survive and who is going to bite the dust is not difficult to see.


Anonymous

Modi/Biden IMEC has been relegated to the fiction corner of the library

But India is a participant in the India/Middle East/Europe Corridor proposed by Joe Biden, but which is still stuck in conception stage, due to the Middle East War. This is supposed to rival the BRI, with Joe Biden even thinking of building a railroad from the Pacific all the way across the Indian Ocean. How did dementia Joe came up with such a bright idea is unbelievable. Talk about building castles in the air. I think all that gloating is going to die and be buried together with Joe Biden's end of days.
Even if the Middle East War de-escalates, which is unlikely, Trump would have cut it off with his USA first doctrine. Anything good done by Biden, Trump will destroy it, and anything bad that happens with Trump's policies he will blame Biden. Why would the USA be involved in a project that does not benefit the USA nor Trump himself.

The USA leaders can only con people like Modi, who in turn can only con the religious fanatics in India. After all the song and dance, all seems quiet on the Indian front regarding the corridor to Europe. For all we know, India is not going to contribute a single penny, with USA, Saudi Arabia and others footing the bill, but will be the biggest beneficiary exporting to Europe. How big is India's trade with the EU? Just about 130 billion Euros with all of Europe, compared to China's 840 billion Euros. And not all is going to go through the India/Middle East/Europe Corridor, which may just be good for bragging rights for Modi.


Anonymous