world's 2nd most peaceloving nation: north korea

North Korea has emerged as the world's second most peace loving nation after the USA. This is in accordance to the new definition for peace loving and friendly nation that the world is now led to believe in. The USA is the number one peace loving nation. And to qualify to be peace loving, the country must threaten to invade another nation, or even invade another country, or threaten to launch pre emptive strike against another nation. The USA has done all that. Invaded Iraq, fighting in Afganistan, threatening to launch an attack against Iran, threatening to launch a pre emptive strike against North Korea. And yesterday North Korea did just that. It threatens to launch a pre emptive strike against the USA and will not sit idly by to wait for the USA to strike first. It also has the capability, though not able to launch so many ICBMs, to attack the US. For once the most friendly and peace loving nation is being threatened by the second most friendly and peace loving nation with a pre emptive strike. Now we will see how the US reacts to such a threat.

general election: engaging issues

Technically and legally if the MDA said that any blog or forum talks politics must register with them, then we have to register. And technically this applies to blogs/forums by Singaporeans or non Singaporeans. Only difference is whether they are able to enforce them when non citizens are concerned. For Singaporeans, this is our law and they can throw the book at us. It is up to them whether to do it or not. What is interesting and I would like to quote Hsienloong's statement over the weekend: "But when we have Opposition parties which avoid the issues, which refuse to answer questions, which publish a manifesto and...(which) say, well, the manifesto speaks for itself - and refuse to explain, defend, elaborate and persuade - then I think it's a very strange sort of competition," Let me substitute the above with a few words and hopefully Balaji reads it. I saw him together with Hsienloong when the above was mentioned. "But when we have Government which avoid the issues, which refuse to answer questions, which publish a regulation and...(which) say, well, the regulation speaks for itself - and refuse to explain, defend, elaborate and persuade - then I think it's a very strange sort of government, Ever since Balaji came out with his regulation on controlling free speech in blogs and forums, he has been very reticent about it, without any further explanation though many people are asking for clarifications. Maybe grassroot or peasants are too unimportant for him to reply. There is no need to engage grassroot in any discussion.

invitation to all bloggers and forumers

i know many of you have very interesting views and ways of expressing them. i have set up www.redbeanforum.com so that you can all share your views with other well meaning and concerned singaporeans. you are all invited to post there as a blog is a bit restrictive and limited. remember, you are all welcome. use it as an opportunity to share your ways of looking at things and sharpen your journalistic skills in the cyberworld. this is a new frontier and we are the pioneers in this area. we need to beat a path for others to follow suit. regards.

Thai mob dictating to their king

The mob democracy in Thailand is just going too far and is irritating the powers and even the King. They have abused the power of democracy to throw out a popularly elected prime minister. And now they are demanding his exile from Thailand, to ensure that he has no more influence on Thai politics. Is this too much to ask for? To force a Thai citizen out of Thailand? And now they are even telling their revered king what to do. This is how power corrupts and got crazy in the heads of crazy people. They did not know how much damages they have done to the Thai economy, Thai tourism and trade and investment. And the military is losing its patience on a mob that has gone crazy with power. Would they demand the removal of the king if the king turns down their request to appoint an undemocratically elected prime minister?

names of people who donates back their progress package

This thread is reserved for honourable and generous people who, for their own reasons, donate the progress package money back to the public coffer. I would like to post the names of such people here. Please let me know if you come across any. The first name is David Gan

how stupid can singaporeans be?

I am angry on a Sunday morning. Shit, why should I be angry on a Sunday morning on a topic like stupid Singaporeans? I just read in the papers that David Gan, the famous hair stylist, also received the progress package. And this generous man, with a big heart, is going to donate whatever he gets back to the public coffer. Now, that is a very nice gesture. No, I am not angry with David or his receiving the package. I am angry with stupid Singaporeans who decided to give him the progress package. Andy is a new citizen. He is probably a new citizen for less than 3 years. I welcome him, and many Singaporeans welcome this talented man as one of us. He is a genuine talent in his field, among the best of the best. Not some cheap half baked foreign talents. Now what is my problem? Many foreigners were given the citizenship, and without having to serve national service. And now, just because they are citizens, they are entitled to a share of the nation's wealth immediately, because they are citizens. The national wealth was built over many years by generations of Singaporeans. And if they are to be given to new citizens, at least make sure that they serve national service as well, or be qualified for it after a certain time criteria, to be fair to the rest of the stupid Singaporeans who have to serve national service for 30 years of their lives. This is another way to degrade the meaning of national service and the value of citizenship to a born Singaporeans.

badawi can't take the heat

Actually I wanted to start a new topic on what I am going to say below but find them all inter related. Let me start off by referring to an article in the Straits Times today reporting that Badawi wanted his critics on the Ninth Malaysia Plan 'to hold their tongues and to stop spreading negative stories about the plan.' Basically Badawi is experiencing the heat and cannot take the heat. In this new century of internet and virtual reporting, politicians cannot afford to talk rubbish and propose craps and think they can get away with it. Not that in the past there were no criticisms about those silly policies they dished out. They were articulated but not heard. The people have no means to be heard. Today everything is heard and immediately heard. There is no way the politcians can pretend to be an ostrich and refuse to see or hear the feedback. And the internet, the blogs and forums, are the real feedback which they can only refuse to hear. They chose to set up a fictitious feedback unit and only consider those things there as feedback. Anything comments outside of the feedback unit is considered destructive criticism and not to be taken seriously. And they are going to behave like Badawi, when the criticisms are strong and they do not want to hear, gag them. Don't let people speak or air their views, so they can feel good and believe that everything is good, the ground is sweet. And their 'yak' proposals can then be pushed through happily because they did not hear any criticism. Is that what intelligent people want to do? Get only the feedback they want to hear and the rest must not be allowed to say anything? If there is no immediate feedback, the PAP will be happily singing the song of no upgrading to opposition wards and go into Potong Pasir and Hougang with their legs wide open. Now they can reword their positions and hopefully can undo the damage caused. Would they say a big thank you to internet, to the bloggers and forumers for exposing how badly that position was received?