Myth 182 - When human rights is not right

Walter Woon warned against following the cult of human rights believers, when championing human rights becomes a religion. Constance Singam wanted more human rights fanatics to push the boundary of human rights. Walter Woon has his concerns as human rights has been used as a tool by the West to serve less than rightful purposes. It is only human rights when it serves their interests, and violating human rights when needed without any inkling of guilt. No hypocrisy? No? Human rights is all wrong when it is adulterated by politics. Human rights is rubbished when pushed by evil people who were violators of human rights. The plight of the Myanmar typhoon refugees could have been better handled if aids/human rights do not come with all the conditions for political interference. Human rights when pushed for its own sake could be much more palatable. At least it is an ideal to live and fight for. But when human rights is used to bash people for one's political ends, then it is all a big farce. Having said that, it is also wrong to pooh pooh away human rights per se. We are to a big extent violators of human rights ourselves and these should not go on without any condemnation. We shall start at home, to treat our people better, fairer and more equitable. Oops, not only our people but every human beans, even children of lesser gods.

What it could have been

A clean and good looking young professor packing his two kids into his car and driving them to school on a bright morning. On the way to the college he drops his wife to work. Back in campus, standing in front of bright eyed and eager students delivering his lecture, and the young ladies swooning over him. A lawyer in court mesmerising the judge and his opposite counsel with his brilliant oratory skills. And at the end of the day drinking at the Cricket Club with all his peers to make merry. These could be the wonderful lives of Dr Chee Soon Juan, JBJ and Gopalan Nair. Life could be so beautiful and easy. All these are gone now. Is it worth it? They have paid very heavy price to want to participate in the political system of the country. And not only they are suffering, their families are equally badly affected. The wives and children don't deserve all these. Paradise can be hell for some.

Quality FTs coming

(SINGAPORE) Thousands of job cuts in US and European banks - a fallout of the sub-prime mortgage crisis - are forcing bankers in those countries to seek jobs further afield. And they are showing interest in a region still relatively insulated from the crisis: Asia, particularly Singapore. 'It used to be difficult to get any senior finance professional in the US interested in moving to Asia. Now we are getting way too much interest!' This is the best news for Singapore. Real and quality FTs from the US are coming here. Let's start to be more selective and pick the best instead of any donkey that carry a foreign passport. This is a great opportunity for the banks to upgrade their mediocre talent pool and transform themselves into real international banks. As for the not so talented locals or those not so talented FTs who are already here, please make way or seek employment elsewhere. The best are coming.

When no one wins

ldzmyiiqThis is my observation on the civil suit against Chee Soon Juan recently. The Chee siblings lost, simple as that, and had to spend a few days behind bars. Did the plaintiffs win? They only won the judgement of the court. Otherwise they lost in all counts in the court of public opinions. The big loser is the Judge if what was heard in the gossip corners and cyberspace were to go by. Oh there is a bigger loser, make your guess. There is a common saying that one can win a battle and lose a war. This is an unnecessary skirmish that should not have happened. Not worth a minute to be spent on it. But people can have different opinions and think it is important and the show must go on. This is at best a hollow victory with an immeasurable price.

The disaffected Singaporeans

After the front page news of Singaporeans being kept out by a niteclub in favour of foreigners, I was expecting more reactions from Singaporeans to stand up for their rights. Or at least there should be some letters appearing in the msm forum. Nothing. Singaporeans no longer bother about such stuff. Take their money, treat them life serfs, take away their rights, no sweat. They don't mean anything to them. Such an attitude of disinterest only shows that they do not identify with the things taken away. And you cannot take things away from them when they don't take ownership of them. Mentally or psychologically, they do not think they are the owners of this island anymore. This is also reflected by a recent blog on why doing NS did not make the blogger more Singaporean or wanted to defend Singapore. Singaporeans have given up on Singapore by default. They are treating this land of theirs like the guest workers, as a hotel. They probably will run or fly off when things are not going the way they want. If Singaporeans are feeling this way, soon any foreigners can walk into their HDB flats and ask them to get lost and they will. There is no belonging, no ownership and no commitment to anything here. With so many things happening that affect them directly, were there any reactions? No. Let it be. Singaporeans can be pushed around in Singapore by anyone. We have failed miserably in nation building. Or maybe that is not what that matters. Let it be. Let this island be a no man's land. Free for grab. When nothing matters, nothing matters.

Ugly Singaporean maid abusers

Singaporean couple jailed for maid abuses Husband to be jailed 4 weeks and wife 6 weeks for beating and abusing maid. They even imposed fines on the maid for every mistake she made when the maid's income is so miserably low. We need more severe punishment for such cruel behaviour. There is no excuse to abuse maids. The msm should make it a standard practice to print mug shots of maid abusers on their front page when found guilty by the courts. This will be an effective deterrence for such inhuman behaviour.

Batam official threatens to cut PNG supply to Singapore JAKARTA, May 06, 2008 (AsiaPulse via COMTEX) The regional Indonesian assembly of Batam threatens to block the gas flow pipes from ConocoPhilips via Batam to Singapore unless Perusahaan Gas Negara (PGN) normalizes gas supply to the industrial island. "We and the people of Batam will block gas flow to Singapore," a regional assembly leader Batam Ruslan Kasbulatov said. Ruslan said the state-owned gas distributor has increased supply to Singapore at the expense of supply to Batam. "As an Indonesian state company PGN should give priority to Batam instead of Singapore," he said. I copied the above article from a post in Sammyboy.com. This is the kind of tribal mentality that still exists in our neighbouring countries. They do not know how it will affect foreign investments/doing business in their countries when investors cannot find confidence and consistency in their application of the rule of law. This is the kind of fear for investors in the Johore IDR. Any time they can mess up whatever business agreements when they want to appease domestic politics. They just cannot separate business interests and considerations from politics. Who would dare to do business with them? And they will say, 'Don't invest don't invest lah.'

No dogs and Singaporeans allowed!

Can this really happen in paradise? Or, according to one anonymous blogger, it is already happening, except not written? And who is manning the gate to keep Singaporeans out? Singaporeans? But don't worry, Singaporeans will get use to it. We have got use to compromise our civil rights.

The fight against dictation culture

Two letters to the ST Forum by Alan Chuang, Accident Analyst and Bernard Low, President, Singapore Motor Workshop Association, were strongly against the recent new rules dictating that motorists should compulsorily do a list of things when involved in an accident. The one I am very cheesed off is the demand for motorists to drive their car for inspection even when there is no damage to the car. This is totally uncalled for and outrageous. Why should motorists whose cars are not damaged be incovenience to such an extent? Petrol and time are very expensive and not free. Then there is a whole list of difficult demands found objectionable as put up by the two forumers that borders on anti competition, cartel, high handedness and authoritarian. The GIAS is behaving like they own Singapore and is dictating to the motorists with unfair conditions. The two forumers are calling for the govt to step in to protect motorists from such haughty demands.

A Significant Silence

Singaporeans are not dumb. But I can hardly say that they are smart either. At best they are selfishly clever in staying away from troublesome issues. They are only interested in their own vested interests and would not mind acting dumb. The latest court case involving Chee Soon Juan and Chee Siok Chin is a great example of how Singaporeans go about their compartmental lives. The case is transparent to them. Did not happen and they do not want to know or talk about it. What Singaporeans do or react to happenings around them can best be described by asking a few questions. Who is involved, will it benefit them to get involved, why would they step on a pile of shit when they don't have to, better to continue with their own lives than to invite trouble. This is the kind of attitude that is pervasive in our society. And that is how many serious breaches and crimes were allowed to go on without anyone putting a stop to them or even whispering a word. None of my business. Just walk away. The numerous corporate governance problems, the intrigues in corporate world, where little warlords ruled and messed around in their little fiefdoms are obvious to many but blind to many as well. The little Red Dot has many juicy red apples with many worms gnawing inside. The silent culture, see nothing, hear nothing, say nothing, and do nothing will do us in as a matter of time. What? What's happening? No I don't know.

Citizenship has its privileges

Front page news on My Paper, Singaporeans, being citizens, have the privilege of paying cover charge to enter St James Power Station Disco. It is the club's policy to allow foreigners in free but Singaporeans must pay. Such a privilege status in our own country will make Singaporeans stand up, at least as graceful and generous host. Now no one can complain that Singaporeans are not friendly to foreigners or even xenophobic. I think all our entertainment or consumer outlets should be encouraged to have such a policy. Foreigners special discount, or serve foreigners first. But no clubs or public places should have any signs saying 'Singaporeans not allowed' or Singaporeans no welcomed.' And in buses or MRTs, Singaporeans should stand up and offer their seats to foreigners. We are getting truly international. We are a world class hotel. St James Station and all its Singaporean staff should be given a medal during the National Day Celebration for putting Singapore as the best place for foreigners to be. They should be named Outstanding Singaporeans of the Year.

Moral and Ethical conduct of people in high office

Whether a person is in the public service or in private organisations, there is this unwritten rule of maintaining a high moral and ethical standard of conduct in the performance of his duty/business. These include making profits and treating their consumers/clients and staff fairly and equitably. Money or profits made through unethical means are ill gotten gains and are to be despised. As we cheered our great monetary wealth, if we allow all the immoral and unethical conduct to go unpunished, it will destroy our social moral fibre and be the cause of our ruin and infamy down the road. Tan Kin Lian said that he did not know that Income made 7.8% pa yield over the last 10 years. And he was the CEO for some part of this duration I think. I am not sure how long he has left Income. What's happening? And Income was paying out bonuses to its policyholders that 'were lower than orignally projected, due to the cut in bonus in some of the previous years.' He 'felt that it is more important for these past bonus cuts to be restored, subject to financial solvency.' I think anyone reading his article published in Today would be able to see the kind of problems that are surfacing. And it all boils down to transparency, ethics and moral conduct of how corporations are being run and how consumers are getting an unfair share of what they are deserving. Maybe Income has quoted wrong numbers.

Help is everywhere

I say it again, Singaporeans are so fortunate. We do not need a typhoon or devastating earthquake to get help. And the help Singaporeans are getting are not small change. Just imagine that Myanmar and China both got US$200k from us officially. And compare these to what the govt and NGOs are giving back to the people to help them. The govt is giving back in the billions to the people. Even CDAC and Sinda gave in hundreds of millions to help the people. CADC gave '$600k last year and expects to provide $250k more to needy families and students.' This amount alone is more than what we gave to Myanmar and China. Aren't we lucky, when help is everywhere. What I am puzzled is that why is it that Singaporeans need so much help? Aren't they going to suffer from a clutch mentality? Aren't these help going to rob away their drive to work hard and be self sufficient? I think we are giving away too much money to help Singaporeans. No wonder they are now not able to compete with foreigners.

Malaysian journalists and bloggers joined hands

They are coming together to demand for more press freedom. They are not happy to see Malaysia falling behind in media freedom. Now would that make any difference? I think they ranked much higher in press freedom than our 146th position, or is it 157th? Does it matter when economic well being is the better criteria to judge the well being of a people? We may be ranking below everyone, but we are rich and prosperous, we have everything other poorer countries are envious off, except, a little less press freedom. But since there are no protest, it means that Singaporeans are happy with our position. We don't need the press freedom that will lead to trouble and riotings in the streets. We don't even need street protests. I hope our msm will rise up to the occasion and propound on our virtues of being 146th or 157th. We are the best in our own ways. We do not need to follow the standards set by the rest of the world.

The Malaysian political intrigue

What is happening in Malaysian politics today will easily beat West Wing or Yes Minister! There are so many plots and sub plots and juicy news, including conspiracies and counter conspiracies. And there are also enough sex to liven up the stories. Malaysia will have an international hit serial if they could turn it into a mega movie. And the best part of it all, it is real! If no want in Malaysia wish to produce it, Singaporean producers should quickly rush over and grab the story.

Transparency versus behind the scene dealings

PN Balji was not too happy that Tan Kin Lian took the issue with NTUC Income public. To Balji, it is better done behind closed doors. I thought transparency is good. Now that the issue is open and no matter the messenger or the way it is being done, right or wrong must be upheld, and so must be the insterest of the consumers. In this case, Balji's conclusion is that because of the way it was aired in public, the consumers will suffered. He is presuming that all the great leaders will take it personally and will dig in their heels at he expense of the innocent consumers. I believe our leaders are objective and rational people and will rise above personal differences and will put the interest of the consumers first. Let's see if I am right or Balji is right. Will the consumers be better off or at least not be worst off.

The changing demographic pattern

'Foreign Affairs Adviser Iftekhar Ahmed Chowdhury yesterday said Singapore is a good destination for skilled and semi-skilled Bangladeshi workers.' I can add a few more. Singapore is a great place for Filipino, Indonesian, Indian and Sri Lankan maids. Singapore is also a good place for Chinese, Indian, Sri Lankan and Bangladeshi workers. With Singapore becoming a haven for these third world low talent and low skill workers, the demographic pattern will soon change. I can simply divide them into two groups, the haves and the have nots. The haves will be the elite and the real foreign talents, driving around in their limousines and residing in exclusive suburbs or in the clouds. At the lower and down to earth end will be the hardlanders and the MRT squeeze with our third world workers. After travelling in MRTs for a while, the ingenuity of nature soon makes one less sensitive to odour and human heat and sweat. Well, got to get use to life in the lower strata of society, taking public transport to work. Mind you, this is world class transport at its best. Imagine if the population continues to increase or when the aircon breaks down. Life in paradise or more accurately living in a third world haven is really great, especially if one comes from the rundown and properly kept public facilities of developing countries. Everything here is like heaven indeed.

Rule less, do more

The MOE has this brilliant concept of teaching less and learning more. Can this same concept be applied in the current state of our national development? After 40 years of rapid growth in all areas, except the political system, are our people matured enough, educated enough, to be ruled less and be freer to do and live a freer life on their own? Or are we still in the same state of enlightenment as the Middle Ages when the people were still made up of the ignorant masses and needed to be ruled with an iron fist? Are we progressing or regressing? Looking at some young upstarts who have never been concerned about the people's well being except how to make their first million and telling the people about life and nation is quite creepy. As we continue to brag about how advanced and progressive we are, how knowledgeable and wealthy we are in the pocket and in the head, which I believe is true relatively to our past, it is time to change the mindset of the rulers to lead instead of to rule. Or what we are experiencing today is actually an advanced stage of ruling less?

Being led to believe

You were being persuaded to buy something on the belief that it will perform according to some specifications or will provide some satisfaction to you, or will reward you in some ways. A certain expectation is being built into the transaction. And if it is not met, no deal, or there is a breach of the agreement, in this case a downgrading of expectation. This is perhaps what the NTUC Income bonus issue is all about. Tan Kin Lian said, 'please keep to your promise.' Is such an expectation unreasonable? Why should the buyer be made to accept terms that make them worst off because the seller has to juggle and improve his solvency problem? The key question here is whether the existing buyers are better off. Would it be too much to ask for or to demand that the seller keep to its promise to existing buyers and only apply the new terms to new buyers? I thought this is the only decent and ethical thing to do. Apparently this shifting of the goal posts and applying it to existing buyers and incumbents is the accepted way of doing business here. The changing of the terms of CPF contributions affecting the date of withdrawal, the interest rate, and the withholding of the money saved are similar to changing the terms in an agreement. The affected people keep quiet, so they are presumed to have given their consent or approval to the changes. The decision maker will say, see, no protest, so the people must be happy. The people who made the changes think that it is ethically and morally right to do so, probably on the declared objective that 'it is for the good of the buyers or incumbents.' What kind of logic is this? There are many brilliant people here but none of the brilliant people has questioned these changes. Would Ngiam Tong Dow say something on this since he is on a speak your mind spree? Maybe all the super talents share the same logic, that it is alright. Another Uniquely Singapore feature?

Equal misery

Rajasegaran Ramasamy was quoted in the ST Forum complaining that teachers are getting free parking while in other ministries and stats boards the officers have to pay for parking. To him this is grossly unfair. He wanted the system to be fair to all and teachers be made to pay for their parking in school compounds. His most convincing argument is that 'the govt is losing a potential revenue of some $1.625 mil monthly.' Now who can argue against such a big sum of money logic. I am sure the bean counters will be smiling in glee with so much money to collect. Sorry teachers, your little privilege is habis. I will be glad to support Rajasegaran if he were to proposed that all the ministries and stats boards should follow the example of the MOE and allow their staff to park free. I forgot, Mindef officers are allowed to park free also. Will I be seeing paid parking lots in military camps and carpark wardens patrolling inside them as well? Rajasegaran's suggestion is a 'bee tang' idea and should be implemented and he be awarded a gold medal for public administration. The best suggestion I have heard from a citizen so far.

Tan Kin Lian speaking his mind

Tan Kin Lian has developed a new speak your mind culture in cyberspace. He spoke about things he knows best, insurance. And he went one step further by taking on NTUC Income on the changes in the payout of insurance bonus. He was unhappy when the payout formula was changed and policy holders will be getting less than when he was in charge. He ran a protest in cyberspace and would have taken the issue to the NTUC Income AGM. Fireworks were expected. Then, pssssst.... He was invited for tea by Lim Boon Heng and Matthias Yao. As reported in the ST, 'Mr Lim told him that his committee would ensure that Income's policyholders would continue to get good value, while Mr Yao said the restructure was designed to improve Income's solvency position.' Wow, if the payout formula was not changed, Income's solvency will not improve. Matthias added, 'those who terminate their policies this year would not be in any worse off position compared with the previous bonus structure.' What about those who did not terminate their policies this year? Should they all scramble to terminate their policies so that they will not be worst off? Anyway, 'Chairman Ng Kee Choe called the restructure a "very carefully considered decision" and one in the best interests of policyholders.' Was the old bonus structure carefully considered?

NKF story - Amazing Grace?

The Amazing Case or Amazing Grace? Durai is back and will serve his 3 month jail sentence from 10 Jun 08. He has to date paid $1.4 mil to NKF and still owing $2.6 mil of the total $4 mil owed. He has two rich friends to lend him $500k each to help to pay the debt. Wonderful friends to have. What is so amazing about that. Nothing. What is amazing is that it was reported that Richard Yong, Loo Say San and Matilda Chua, all three has yet to make any payment. They were declared bankrupts. All of them were high flyers, with big paychecks, living is style and luxury. And they could not and did not pay a cent to NKF! What's going on? Isn't that amazing?

The right to give and to receive

The right to give and the right to receive With charity taking a new form, and with some gaining ill repute, it is best to leave it to the individuals to do what they think best. I am talking about the right to scholarship here. The right of the govt to give scholarships and the right of the recipients to receive the scholarships. On the right to give, a noble act which is often tied to rewarding the best and the most brilliant who would in turn benefit the country. This must be distinguished from giving bursaries, normally seen as a financial assistance scheme to help the recipients financially. Malaysia was giving only 20% of govt scholarships to non Malays for at least 20 years. 80% of govt scholarships were given to Malays, assuming the numbers are true. This is the kind of racial disparity dictated by Mahathir and UMNO. And Malaysia is paying for it today, for giving scholarships not to the brightest but according to racial birth rights. Singapore has another kind of problem, giving scholarships to non citizens. From the citizens' point of view, from the taxpayers' point of view, both are seen as unfair and unacceptable. The right to receive, in Malaysia's case, is quite evident. As taxpayers, as citizens, the non Malay students whose academic grades are excellent should be awarded scholarships based on their merit. What about Singapore giving scholarships to foreigners whose parents are not taxpayers or citizens? Or are they aid or assistance packages to other countries? Malaysia is now revising the percentage from 20% to 40% in favour of non Malays. The MCA and MIC deserve to lose the election for allowing this to go on for so long. How many Scholarships did Singapore gave to foreigners? What is the percentage vis a vis citizens?

Stoned right!

Sharon Stone may be stoned, but she is damned right that the big earthquake in China is a karmic retribution for China's role in Tibet. But she forgot to elaborate more by looking at the progress in the US, Europe and particularly Japan and Germany. Many people actually are confused about the law of karma. The true karmic law is like the law of the jungle, the survival of the fittest. The greater the evil, the better a nation or people prosper. China has not done enough evil, and that is why it is still a developing nation and suffering from national calamities. And that applies to the poor Asian and African countries. Compare to Europe, after they colonised and robbed the rest of the world their wealth and their dignity, and impoverished most of them, Europe is peaceful, graceful and rich. So did America. Look how great and rich the USA is? It is all karma. They reaped their good karma from killing and exterminating the Red Indians. They reaped their good life from turning Africans into slaves. And their good karma will continue if they keep killing the Arabs. China should learn from the USA, then it will become a richer country. Germany and the gassing of the Jews, concentration camps etc, see how good is the karma of Germany? It is now the most prosperous nation in Europe. The same applies to the Japanese. Remember the atrocities they inflicted to Asians when they tried to conquer and rule all of them, including the Rape of Nanking and the chemical factory using Chinese to test chemical and biological weapons, which they passed all the information and research material to the Americans, see how well off they are now? The law of karma says that a country and people must be cruel to beget good karma and live well. Now watch carefully as America and Europe start to decline and degenerate into the third world league as they become more human and care for human rights. Stone is right. She is stoned right. China was not evil enough to reap goodness!

Frivolous pursuits

Today I am running out of things to do or things to write. As I was fiddling with what to do, as I have a little time to spare, the thought came over my mind that I should say some good things about people. Maybe I should pick up some people I know and praise them sky high. Making people feel good is always a good thing. I often see the gladful smile on the faces of ladies when I greeted them with, 'You look so good this morning.' After all it is free compliments. But I am also cautious not to over do it as it may sound insincere or freakish. It is just a thought. All of you who have nothing better to do, please say something good about someone else. That will be a good start for the day.

No issues, so nothing to write

Surprisingly there are no more hot issues to write about. Mas Selamat case, settled and closed, Pedra Branca dispute over, high cost of living no longer an issue with govt handouts and now special one time bonus for civil servants. Singapore now regaining its top position as the 9th most expensive city to do business, and no riotings or protest with high cost of petrol and food. It means that the people must be happy. Tough that there are nothing else to write or talk about. Oh, maybe I shall join the party and praise Boon Wan for being the best minister Singapore ever got. Does he deserve such an accolade? Duh, who am I to say he is good or no good? Better to leave it to the people who are affected by his policies to tell their stories. Anyway, his policies do not affect me at all. I don't patronise govt hospitals. I can't afford such luxuries. The only thing that adversely affected me is that my money are stuck in Medisave. If I were to grade him on this point, I fail him. As for his mean testing policies, only the people affected will be qualified to comment.

Knocking on the door of Opec

Indonesia quits Opec. It has become a net importer of oil despite its huge reserves. So no point staying on as a member. Never mind, Singapore should register its interest to take over Indonesia's vacated seat. We have all the wherewither to be an Opec member now. We have the sea in front of Pedra Branca to explore our oil. We have our oil rig builders to build all the rigs that we want. And we have the oil refineries to refine the oil. And we have all the supporting services to go oil exploring and oil digging. A new company, maybe call it SinOil, will soon come into the picture when Singapore starts to produce its own oil. Boom town Charlie for Singaporeans. We will be able to finance all the retirement schemes for our aged citizens. Another 100 years of prosperity.

Myth 181 - Low taxes

Our income tax has been lowered quite substantially. Estate Duty has been removed. Corporate taxes also lowered. And we have a free port where many things are tax exempted. Singaporeans must be paying the lowest tax in the world. Very true, for the very rich. The richer you are, the lower you are taxed unless you buy that yacht or that bungalow in the sky. On the other hand there are many kinds of 'taxes' that Singaporeans are paying. CPF, Medisave, CPF Life, Minimum Sum are all taxes in different guises. Basically they take your money away, with a promise of returning them some time in the future. Even the choice of hospital wards is a kind of compulsory choice to pay. Then we have taxes on cars, road tax, road usage tax called ERPs, petrol, COEs, TV and Radio Licences and all kinds of licences, Consumption Taxes on utilities, taxes to teach you and remind you water is precious, contributions to compulsory social services like CDAC, Mendaki, Sinda, and the all pervasive and comprehensive GST that go on top of all the purchases, including those already taxed, like cars, essential services, petrols, and whatever. Is it really true that Singapore is a tax haven? For corporations and doing business, perhaps. For the people, what is the absolute amount of tax that the people are paying vis a vis say UK, US and Australia or even Malaysia?

Engaging the bloggers

Najib Razak agreed that it is important and correct to engage bloggers and clear whatever misconceptions or misperceptions there are among the people of the govt. It is simply communication, talking to and with the people. This is one of the good things that came out of the recent political earthquake in Malaysia. The earthquake has propelled Malaysia ahead of Singapore in openess and willingless to engage bloggers. Their politicians are even confident enough to advocate that all politicians must have their own blogs to share their thoughts on things. Such attitude cannot have happened in a political system when politicians would have to double check with the boss for approval before sharing their views. Malaysia is going to lead Singapore in this area. Posting in cyberspace requires a lot of give and take as words could not always describe correctly or accurately what the poster intended. Also, without mischief or malice, some words or views may come out harsh and very critical. At times they are due to misconception, misunderstanding or wrong interpretation of things. And all these can easily be clarified and straightened with two way communications that cyberspace is best at. Honest people posting in cyberspace should engage honest people in a gentlemanly way even if both do not see eye to eye. Views can be different or opposing. No matter. What is unfortunate will be for some uptights to resort to threats and taking people to courts for the slightest misunderstandings or misrepresentations. Adults must be allowed to talk it out, reason it out in a rational and graceful manner. Then we will have progress as a civilisation and keep pace with the progress in technology, like internet and cyberspace. Only when the intent is more than simply an airing of views, when there is intent to mislead, to libel, to attack someone's integrity wrongfully, and when sincere exchange of views were ignored, then there is ground to seek legal justice. At the moment cyberspace is seen as a dangerous place, where angels fear to thread.

No to subsidised petrol for Singaporeans

It is a right move by the Malaysian govt to stop subsidising petrol to foreigners. On a matter of principle, a country should only subsidise living cost to their citizens. Subsidising foreigners is like giving away taxpayers' money. It must be citizens first. I think Malaysia should be very appreciative of our ingenious 3/4 tank rule. It puts a lid on Singaporeans benefitting from their generosity, or exploiting their generosity. On the business point of view, to attract foreigners to spend money in Malaysia, especially around JB, now that is a different issue. Big shopping centres don't mind giving special discounts or offers, or giveaways to attract shoppers. Is the subsidised petrol a giveaway discount to attract shoppers? Issues like this cannot be simply done away with. It is quite complicated and need a little more thoughts.

No legislation on rest days for maids

The onus or privilege is left to the employers to look after the maids well. The fact is that many employers have not been treating the maids well. Why are we not legislating at least one day a week as rest days for maids? It is only decent and human to allow the maids a day off a week like all workers. If as a country we are unable and did not want to do it, we can expect employers to think that it is alright to do so. Individually some employers may not want to do it. As a country, as a people, it is important that we get this message across that maids are human beans and need a rest day. Maids are not indispensable for 365 days a year. There are just like tools of convenience for those who can afford them. But they are not mechanical. It is unbelieveable to accept the notion that our families cannot live without a maid for one day in a week. And if they really need a maid everyday, pay for it. It is definitely a luxury. Maid is a new development and a new help for families. We, as a people, fails miserably in this area. This is not even about being graceful, it is about being disgraceful. We don't expect ourselves to work everyday of the week but we expect another human bean to do so for our comfort. What are we becoming when we get richer?

A return to the LKY era

We are changing fast, but I can't help thinking that we are moving back into the 70s, the days when LKY was in charge. LKY is everywhere. You see him, you hear him, and you feel his presence, not just physically, but his influence on policies. In those days, all he needed to say is an 'ah choo,' and the whole place will be disinfected. There was this joke that he had a round of golf at Tanah Merah Country Club and his ball was curved by the wind. He asked why the wind was so strong. The next day the casuarina trees along Changi Beach were halved in height. It was a joke to exemplify how people over reacted to his comments. Recently he commented against subsidies as it would distort the market forces. I think this will become an official policies or an unwritten rule from now on. Subsidy is going to be a four letter word. No ministry will dare to wander near it. Let's see which subsidy will be the first to go.

Disappeared without a trace

I think Mas Selamat really vaporised into thin air. Totally no trace of him. But one good thing about closing this chapter on him, as reported in the msm, is that people have cooled down, at least in Parliament. The Mas Selamat issue is over. There is a final accountability in Parliament and a proper closure. The people at fault have been properly dealt with. It is no longer an issue.

Another case of Dictation Culture

The new motor insurance framework, if drivers did not comply may lose no claims discount. This will take effect from 1 Jun 08. 1. At the accident scene, drivers must not only exchange their particulars but take digital or MMS photos of the vehicles involved. 2. They must call their insurer's hotline for an authorised tow truck or further advice. 3. Then, take their vehicle to an approved reporting centre within 24 hours or by the next working day, whether or not it was damaged. If one does not have a camera of mobile phone with camera, mati. And the picture taken is specifically defined as digital or MMS photos. Film camera not acceptable. The insurers assume that everyone has them and in working condition, battery must be working and charged. And even if there is no damage, still must send vehicle to approved reporting centre. What for? If owners accepted that there is no damage, not enough, must send car for proof! What nonsense is this?

Extraordinary Gains!

With the high cost of living escalating, oil and commodities and food prices running wild, the least the govt can do is not to ride on the extraordinary gains through GST and other taxes on these items. Do something towards these taxes to reduce the cost a little for the people. And this is NOT asking for subsidies. Just maintain the govt's income from such taxes and not making more because of all the external factors. Why no one raises these issues in Parliament? Seat belt is important. But so important meh, that the high cost of living is a non issue except to Low Thia Kiang and Sylvia Lim?

Subsidies to instal seatbelts

This is a hot issue among the mothers in parliament and they fought with gusto. They wanted to protect the safety of children and wanted seatbelts to be installed immediately. Who pays? The most sensible MP coming from this discussion is Sin Boon Ann. It is only $25, not a big cost to the govt and subsidy is needed. It is so easy to demand that the bus operators pay for it. Huh, how much are they making to ferry the school children? And this is an essential service, a national service. Why must the govt be so careful over issues of $25 or $30 and then talked about million dollar salary not enough? No subsidy. It will distort the market. Come on lah. Just because LKY said so and it becomes an edict? Everything must be seen in its proper context. Must as well cut off all subsidies to HDB flats and medical bills. These are the greatest subsidies that distort the market price mechanism. Anyway, what's the big issue?

It's happened, what to do?

This is about what sum up the proceedings on tackling rising cost of living. Lim Hng Kiang said, "we 'cannot completely insulate ourselves' from the global price hikes." The govt is looking at other measures, no cutting of GST or petrol taxes or that sort of things. Anyway our petrol tax is 'modest,' only 44c a litre. And the govt's policy is to maintain price stability etc. Have prices been stable? Many have reached a point when every cent counts, when every little increases are no longer affordable. Can understand this or not? Oh, the high inflation rate will cool off later in the year. It is only temporary. Really, are we expecting the prices to go back to where they were before after the cooling off period? Obviously not and they will stay at current level. So how would temporary once off handouts going to help in the long term? And workers are not going to expect pay rise or substantial pay rise to offset the high inflation cost. The solution, please tighten your belt.

Get rid of baju kurung!

A heated debate is on in Malaysia to get rid of the baju kurung which the Malay students have been wearing since time immemorial. It is a traditional Malay dress and there is nothing indecent or disgraceful about it. What the advocates dislike about the dress is that it is too sexy and will be the reason for rape. How silly can they be. A pretty face is also a reason for rape. Hide the face? Ok, Ok, bring in the burqa. Malaysian students should henceforth be banned from wearing traditional Malay baju kurung and opt for Arabic burqa. Soon they will all be more Arabic than Malays.

Crazy people and their crazy ideas

Singaporeans who have the privilege of living to the ripe old age of 70 and above should be preparing themselves to depart from this physical world. Only those who have a lot of unspent money should think of how to spend those money, and one prerequisite is to keep themselves alive at all cost. And for Singaporeans who think they are lucky to live till 80 and above, enjoy everyday they can. Don't ever think of wasting your money by putting them into any form of life or medical insurance. The end is near. Whoever is asking people to keep buying medical insurance at that kind of age needs to have his sanity check. But of course, if there is plenty of money, go for it, and try to live till 100. For those who need the money to live, live and be happy for the day. Everyday is a bonus.

What's wrong with subsidies?

"I read the newspapers and the simplest thing is to write and say, subsidise. Rice, oil, bus fares, even putting seat belts on school buses. That is the surest way to go downhill” LKY I don't agree with his views on this. Subsidies or handouts are different forms of welfare. If one is wrong, both are wrong. Anyway, I don't think Singaporeans are asking for subsidies to the extent of giveaways at below cost. Market subsidies is one thing that can be cut for essential items. Profit in essential goods at times like this can also be cut as long as the importers are not losing money. Making profits on such items at such times leave much to be desired. Then there is the huge petrol tax that can be lowered without affecting govt revenue when petrol price was much lower. In fact it should be cut to lower business cost. Nobody is expecting a blanket subsidy for everything. Fine tuning a little here and there to help the people is what the people expect of the govt.

China got money!

China got plenty of money, $2 trillion in reserve. With so much money, China does not need any donation or help for the Sichuan victims. Is this what My Paper is trying to say in its front page article? I must agree. People with a lot of money should not be given more money. People who are earning millions should stop whining and demanding for more. Why? Simple, they got plenty of money. Anyway, just to ease my conscience, and to do a little for humanity, I still a few dollars to the Sichuan Earthquake victims. Never mind if China has a lot of money. It is personal. You do what you think is right or what that makes you feel good. You want to give, just give. Don't want to give, don't give. What about those who got millions and still think they need more? Does My Paper has a view on that? Never mind lah, they need it, and if they are able to take it, let them take lah. It would be nice if the msm take up such an issue for discussion. And if a rich country like paradise got hit by a natural disaster, I think many people will also ask the same question. Should they help paradise? Paradise got money what?

Legislation for whistle blowers

Singapore is like a Third World nation when it comes to the protection of employees' rights. Corporate Governance advocate Mak Yuen Teen. There is a serious need for legislation to protect whistle blowers if Singapore is serious about reducing fraud in the workplace. I think this is asking too much. As the culprits of abuses in corporation are mainly inflicted by the management. Why would they want to push for such legislation? In my experience, we have perhaps one of the most disciplined and docile workforce. And management often were very high handed and got away with it because no one dare to scream. Legislation is absolutely necessary to prevent further abuses in the corporate world.

Is there a gag order?

Or is there a unwritten order not to engage bloggers in cyberspace? Or is it a crime or a sin to be seen in cyberspace for official or professional journalists and reporters? More likely it is a kind of self censorship. Without the official nod, without anyone saying it is ok, better stay clear of cyberspace. I have on many occasions quoted journalists and reporters on their articles and views, with their names clearly written. I was hoping that they would come by and add in their views or to offer some alternative views. It was always silence. I have yet to see a journalist or reporter engaging the bloggers in cyberspace. For that matter, people in authority. Are they afraid that their names will be tarred with feathers? Or are they afraid that their views will not receive the same silent approval, or be attacked and they could not defend by censorship or by not printing the rebuttal? Cyberspace is the most level playing field one can get in a discussion. Everyone is free to post, from king to pauper. But titles are not respected. It is the view that carries the weight. When will official and professional journalists and reporters feel safe and comfortable to write and post freely in cyberspace?

Something slips by

We were ruled by the colonial masters and fought for our independence, to be free people, and to be able to determine our own future. Has anything changed? Yes, we got rid of our colonial rulers. We were no longer ruled. Did we? Have we gone to sleep and woke up to realise that we are being ruled again? We are now talking of the rulers and the ruled, or the rulers and the many rules. And the rulers are not denying that they are the rulers. Or at least no one thinks that such a perception is misplaced and needed to be clarified. Maybe the rulers are happy to let it be, to continue ruling. And the people also contented to let it be, to continue to be ruled. Is this political development, progress? Or have we gone back to the medieval days where kings and princes were born to be great and the people to bow in their presence? Long live the king! After more than 40 years of independence, this feeling of being ruled is creeping in and surprisingly very comfortable. Is this the mentality of Singaporeans, that they loved to be ruled, needed to be ruled, and wanted to be ruled? Without being ruled, without rulers, they will feel unease and lost? In the next general election the campaign should be, 'Elect your Rulers!' Then we need not live with the hypocrisy that we are electing people's representatives to Parliament.

The schools gone by

Some of the bloggers here reminisced about the days gone by when we studied very little and still got by with our lives with very little. Those were times when Standard 5 or equivalent of Primary 6 could land one a job as a Chief Clerk(tua chye hoo) in an organisation or even as a senior civil servant in the colonial civil service. And one could wear white long pants and white shirts, to be whiter and more similar to the white lords. Educational standards then were very low. Qualifications of teachers were equally low. It was a case of the blind leading the blind. The aim was to be able to learn the 3 Rs. That would be adequate. The colonial masters did not see the need for the locals to be too highly educated. The first Chinese secondary school, The Chinese High School, was a communal effort by the Chinese community to educate their own children. No, not the responsibility of the govt then. They paid for everything, including land and building and the teachers' salary. And school life was simple. As children, did we study? Play was all we knew, or staying out of the cubicles we called home. Sometimes home was a folding bed, or bed was a corner of a floor inside the cubicle if one was lucky. Or it could be the corridor or 5 footway. Staying out was the norm, at least for the children of coolies and odd job labourers. The outdoor was the living room. Tuition or proper guidance by parents in education was a luxury that few could afford. Even if some parents tried, the teachers were mostly school dropouts, whose parents could put them through a few years in school but they failed to progress to secondary school or at best Secondary Two. Anyway, who cared about education when parents too were illiterate and did not know anything that the children were learning in school except ABC? Life was simple and no big dreams. The common big dream of the labourer mothers was the 'tua chye hoo' or a pen pushing job in an office. That was a great achievement and improvement in the quality of life. A 'tua chye hoo' was the senior administrative staff in an office, and could often earned enough to own a car. In the minds of the children it was play and quickly grow up to work. Those who failed early were the joy of parents. They could start work earlier, in the kopitiam as kopi kias, or helping the kok kok mee to peddle the streets for business. When poverty was everywhere, no one felt that poor or miserable. The little corners of wealth were in the Bukit Timah, East Coast and Orchard Road areas when the Ang Moh resided and those enclaves of the babas who were mainly civil servants or working with the British forces as clerks. Stress? The only stress was when the legs were covered with cane strokes left by abusing parents. How to hide them in shorts at schools. Other than that, many passed their lives aimlessly. Life was unstructured and so was elementary education. What's happening today to our children? Striving to be the best that can be. We spent our times singing 'God Save the Queen.'

Over achieved and over stressed

That is the impression I get from the discussions in the ST on the way the students are pushed. As a generalisation, our Primary One starts at kindergarten now. And by Pre university the students are actually doing undegraduate works. The question is what for? So what if our PSLE students are taught at the level of Secondary students? So what if our A level students are taught at university level? Did they shave off a few years in the education system? Or did they becomes smarter than the cohorts in other countries? They are just learning ahead of their time. A simple analogy is for a young person to start dating. Some start at 12, some at 20. What is the big deal if they ended up in a mess? We either derive some goodness from increasing the pressure or else we should let things cool off a little. The pressure can be selective, only for those who are good enough and wanted it. The PSLE and O level should be flexible to accommodate the different standards of knowledge acquisition. Forcing all students to attempt unusually tough questions is wicked. The A level only allows the exceptionable students to do more papers and H3. So the less gifted need not be put through the pace and be unduly stressed. Have mercy on the primary and lower primary students. They cannot be cooked in the same pot.

We got our bets back...some

We put Pedra Branca, Middle Rocks and South Ledge on the betting table and won it back, but not all. Now ain't that clever? What if we lose all? The judges voted 12 to 4 in favour of us. There were 4 who ruled against us. If only 4 more thinks that way. I still think it was a silly thing to do. if we have lost...everything. We lost Middle Rocks and South Ledge. Now that the sovereignty of the island is settled, other issues are still left undecided. Ownership of the territorial waters around Pedra Branca is still vague but more likely to be in Malaysia's favour. They owned Pedra Branca originally, which means that they own the whole area. Only Pedra Branca was signed away to the British and we inherited it. The only thing now is to claim territorial water from Pedra Branca. How far from its shore or, in the case of Malaysia, from the shores of Middle Rocks. The southern waters of Pedra Branca are going to be cut short by Middle Rocks. Hopefully we can claim 200 km from the north and the eastern waters. Even 50 km will be great. Then built on it if we can. Bye bye Middle Rocks and South Ledge. We won! Really?

Chipping at the armour of resistance

As the bloggers keep soldiering on, their presence as an alternative news source cannot be ignored. Vivian Balakrishnan made the strongest statement yet on alternative views in cyberspace. He said in no uncertain terms that the govt is willing to listen to honestly held views from responsible people online. This is the first shift that we are seeing and hearing. Another step forward by bloggers to be heard. But bloggers need to be reasonable and post their views decently and stay away from inciting racial and religious tension. That is not only fair but necessary as we cannot afford to have such issues discussed in an irresponsible manners that will lead to more anger, instability and violence.

Purchasing power down by 2.4%

According to Irvin Seah, an economist, and as reported in Today, his estimate is that 'the purchasing power of wage earners is now 2.4% lower than a year ago. I am wondering whose purchasing power is down by only 2.4%. Perhaps those earning $50k or $100k a month. I think my purchasing power must have gone down by at least 10%. And for those whose income is primarily spent in food and transportation, I think it will be more than 20%. How many percent down will be someone who earns $800 pm when he has to spend $500 on food and $100 on transportation with the rest going to miscellaneous? Pray that he does not have a big medical bill to pay.

Don't expect any pay rise

Of course this statement is meant only for the workers. All the rosy pictures painted a few months back, golden years, full employment, needing more foreign workers and talents in a tight job market, employers paying extraordinary salaries to compete for talents (this is still true if we read how SMU fresh graduates are being paid $10K pm), job applicants can pick and choose their jobs, all these are no more. Despite the runaway cost of living, there will be no huge pay increases to soften the impact. But have no worry, the govt will be there to help. If the govt can afford to give another few hundred thousand dollars to raise the salary of underpaid ministers to market level, they will definitely be able to give another few hundred dollars to the poorer Singaporeans. It is not that bad after all. Employers don't pay more, there is the govt to back up. I don't think there will be another round of retrenchment or get rid of the oldies. Then again oldies can look forward to cleaning tables and washing plates in food courts. And they are all very happy doing that in their golden years. They have been interviewed and they have expressed their happiness to have a job and an income. I think the retirement age for such jobs will be raised to 80.