PAP, check!

We are now in the end game. The first check move has been made. How many moves will it take to a checkmate? I think it is a bit too late to read ‘How to play Chess by Karpov’ and to adopt new strategy and change tactics.
 
In the end game it is all forced moves. And the defender can only react while the attacker dictates the game and waiting for the final move…checkmate.

Rioting in Little India

This is real, not an exercise. 400 people rioted and 18 casualties, including 10 police officers and four from the Civil Defence. 5 vehicles were overturned – 3 from the Police and one SCDF ambulance and a motor cycle. 300 police officers were deployed from the Special Operations Command and the Gurkha Contingent. 27 Asians were arrested at press time.
 
The incident happened around 9.30pm last night when a private coach knocked down and killed a pedestrian. A press conference was held at 2am by Chee Hean, Shanmugam and Police Chief Teo Joo Hee.
The situation is now under control and things have calmed down for the moment. Police are still investigating and more arrests are coming. How this would lead to is anyone’s guess.
 
After 50 years, we finally have a communal riot right in the heart of Singapore. The timing was surreal. Channel 5 just concluded its screening of ‘There was a time’ with a lot of emphasis on the riots in the past. Boon Wan was worried about the foreigners forming enclaves in HDB estates. And the PAP just concluded a major exercise to refocus on what it done wrong and how to get things right again. Now we have this rude reminder that rioting can easily erupt with the slightest incident, a road accident.
The lessons of the past did not seem to be a lesson at all. No on take heed to the enclaves that are forming, and worse, by hundreds of thousands of foreigners congregating at a particular spot. Like George Yeo said, everything looks so perfect. Now the ugliness is raring its head. All the idealism on paper is now torn to pieces by the hard realities on the ground.
 
A lot of soul searching needs to take place after this. Many policies need to be reviewed immediately and the complacency of nothing will go wrong is stark. This is no joking matter. Back to the drawing board, and is anyone still thinking that 6.9m is a good idea? Is there any enclave forming in Little India and other parts of the island? Bitter fruit for thought, surely.
 
We were so lucky to get away with just a few casualties. Little India could be burning and the safety of those residents living in the area could be jeopardized. My God, it is happening. Did anyone see this coming?

Fandi - Welcome home

Ever since the madness about FTs extended to our little pond of sports, I have given up following what was happening to the national football team. All I heard was that the standard has gone from bad to worse despite the silly money being paid to all the foreign players and coaches. So much money wasted, so much time wasted and so many local talents wasted, all for some naïve bugger’s fetish craze for foreigners.

This morning the news reported that Fandi has been appointed as the coach for the Lions XII, taken over from Sundramoorthy. I can only presume that this is the national team. I can only say it is high time we put the screws in our heads back in their proper place and stop coveting other people’s fallen talents. We need to spend our money on our children, our very own talents. We need to nurture our talents, support them and give them pride to be Singaporeans and not be despised as not good enough by FTs. The devious and demeaning thinking and attitude of our silly leaders must be given a good shaking and get the stench of foreigners off them.

To be frank, what we have is a team of potatoes. And no matter who is brought in to coach them, they will play like potatoes, maybe a little better or a little worse. To turn potatoes into world champions cannot be done by simply hiring a foreign coach or a few ‘has been’ foreign footballers. We have to be realistic in our expectations. We must have our own pride. No, Fandi is not going to turn our potato footballers into world champions. And please, do not blame him for not being able to do that. No foreign coaches can do that either. It has been proven.

What Fandi can do is to do us proud as Singaporeans again, kicking the ball in the field and running around for Singapore by Singaporeans. We need to look inward and rely on ourselves, our own children, to bring us glory. We have done that in the past, all on our own, local coaches and local footballers. We must know out limitations and be content that we are regional champions. Forget about the World Cup. Oh, you want to spend our millions to buy the world’s best coach and the best players, go ahead. Make sure it is your own money.

We have had our flirtations with foreign coaches and foreign players and we know what we could get after throwing away good money that could go to our boys. We have Sundramoorthy who did just as good as the foreign coaches. Now we have Fandi back, our very own international football star. Let’s give him the fullest support and let him do us proud. But don’t have delusionary wet dreams that he must bring us the World Cup. Fandi would do his best with the potato footballers we have and they will gel around him as a national team. We can then cheer ‘Fandi’ instead of some queer names from dunno where. Shouting them would not mean anything to anyone of us.

Let’s hear Fandi’s name in everyone’s lips once again. Let our boys grow with him and for every Singaporean to feel really proud when the boys bring home a trophy, no matter how small. They are our own talents, not some FTs from God knows where.

The Secret of the Wonder Weapon That Israel Will Show Off to Obama

There was an article in Time World online in March 2013 by a Karl Vick on the Iron Dome that Israel showed to Obama during his visit early this year. In that article it revealed many myths and facts about the claims of missile systems like the Patriots which were much inferior to what the Israelis have produced. It was claimed that no previous missile system has performed anywhere near the Iron Dome. The kill rate is so impressive, a 84% success hit.

What does this mean? The myth or claims that the Patriots were so invincible as if it could destroy near to 100% of incoming missiles was simply rubbish. When 84% was claimed to be so impressive, something that the Israelis were so proud to show to Obama, what could be the hit rate of the Patriots? It must be quite a distance off the 84% mark. A 60% hit rate would be very generous for the Patriots, and it is more likely to be in the 50% or lesser, which is quite the norm.

What else did the article inadvertently disclosed that were otherwise top secret information? A battery of the Iron Dome costs $50m and comes with 20 missiles, a radar and a control and command system. Each missile thus costs something like $2.5m US dollars.

What were these missiles used to hit, or what did the Palestinians threw at the Israelis? According to the report, since 2005, 4,000 home made missiles were fired into Israel, each costing a few hundred dollars. And the Iron Dome missile uses a contact fuse, meaning it explodes on contact with the incoming missile, a direct hit. It also means one missile can hit one incoming missile.

Let’s work on the numbers. Assuming there is an attack and 500 missiles were launched by the Palestinians. With a theoretical hit rate of 84%, only 420 missiles could be brought down by 500 Iron Dome missiles and 80 will get through. And that is the best theoretical hit rate. In a real situation, the hit rate cannot be that high given all sorts of things that could go wrong.

Anyway, another number worth noting. It needs 1.2 missiles to bring down an enemy missile or $3m. Get the picture? It takes $3m to bring down a Palestinian missile that costs only a few hundred bucks. It sure is a very costly missile system. But wait a minute, this is the best, the Iron Dome. What would be the numbers if the Patriot System is used? Impressive isn’t it?

Now the myth of the invincibility of the Patriots and Iron Dome. The Palestinian missiles are cheap home made missiles that have no ECM or counter measures against a defensive missile. Those that are going to be launched by the Russians, Chinese, Iranians and North Koreans, come with counter measures that would greatly reduce the kill rates of the Patriots and Iron Dome. And there is the tactic of raining missiles which will saturate a very expensive defensive system that only has a few missiles to fire will mean that many will just go through undefended. In a small country and a small area to defend, the cost of these expensive American and Israeli systems may be manageable. When the country is big, to deploy them to cover every air space is simply unsustainable on the defence budget.

All the hypes about the prowess of the Patriots are just hogwash. The Israelis don’t even respect them and found them wanting and have to develop their better Iron Dome. The true kill rate must be quite disappointing but not published.

We don’t need another freedom fighter

Many Afrikaans are remembering Nelson Mandela as the man who fought for their freedom, who fought discrimination against them by the European rulers of their land. Many world leaders are also doing the same, praising a man who fought for the freedom of his people.

How many ever noticed or realised that the South Afrikaans were the native of South Africa and they had to fight for their freedom from foreign rules, from foreigners? It is so pathetic that if the white men did not conquer and colonise their country there was no need for any fighting at all, no need for so many deaths and wounded, no need for so many to be imprisoned and tortured as terrorists. And definitely no need for so many tragedies and tragic stories of broken homes and families.

The painful stories of the South Afrikaans must not go in vain. People of the world must treasure their country, protect themselves and their way of lives from cunning and scheming foreigners that would seize the opportunity to take over their country and turn them into subjects, servants and slaves in their home land.

Sinkies have lately starting to reveal how they are being cheated, discriminated in their own country by foreigners who were invited in hordes to live and work in their country. The foreigners are quietly turning against the Sinkies and the daft Sinkies are happily going about their lives, taking it for granted that they will always be the owners of this island. If the foreigners keep coming in and gang up against them in the near future, the fate of the South Afrikaans can be theirs. By then it would be too late to resist. And they can only hope that 100 years down the road, their progenies could have the chance to celebrate the release of one of their freedom fighters like Nelson Mandela, imprisoned for 27 years and branded as a terrorist for fighting for their freedom that were taken away. And in the meantime, till that day comes, they will live as third class oppressed citizens in their homeland, ruled by foreigners and be discriminated by foreigners in all areas, their homes, land and jobs taken away from them.

The daft Sinkies must understand the lessons of history and not to take for granted their rights and freedom as citizens of their homeland. When it is lost, it will be a very costly and dreadful affair to think of taking back their country. Sinkies must be aware and be politically conscious of what is happening around them, what is happening to their country and fight at the slightest sign that their country is being sold or taken away from them by foreigners. The foreigners must not be allowed to gain a foothold here to take over this country and run the citizens into gallows or into the seas.

Pray we don’t have to worship a hero as a freedom fighter. We don’t need that hero, we don’t need that experience, we just want to be the way it is. Wake up daft Sinkies, before you lose everything and be cursed by your children and grand children for losing this country for them. What is happening in recent years is not fiction or wild imagination. Don’t there be a day when your children or grandchildren were to ask you in your face, ‘What were you doing when the foreigners were taking over the country?

The 7 Highest Paid Political Leaders in the World (2013) You must be joking!

The rankings below is by Yahoo, Ryan Ong of MoneySmart – Thu, Mar 21, 2013

7th Place: Francois Hollande, President of France

Approximate salary: SGD $291,680 per annum
Needs to manage: Approx. 65 million people, 675,000+ square kilometers, at least 400 kinds of cheese
In Singapore, his pay amounts to: Inability to buy a car with his entire month’s pay cheque. Come on, France.

6th Place: Stephen Harper, Prime Minister of Canada

Approximate salary: SGD $387,351 per annum
Needs to manage: Approx. 34.4 million people, almost 10 million square kilometers, hockey violence and American tourists
In Singapore, his pay amounts to: His entire month’s pay cheque should just about make the down payment on a 5 room flat.

5th Place: Uhuru Kenyatta, President of Kenya

Approximate salary: SGD $390,561 per annum
Needs to manage: Approx. 41.6 million people, 580,000+ square kilometers, and convincing the International Criminal Court that he hasn’t committed crimes against humanity. His case is probably next in line, after the producers of Jersey Shore.
In Singapore, his pay amounts to: His entire month’s pay cheque is less than Nparks once paid for 26 bicycles. Also, people need to stop cracking jokes about corruption in Africa. I’m just saying.

4th Place: Michael D. Higgins, President of Ireland

Approximate salary: SGD $404,950 per annum
Needs to manage: Around 4.5 million people, 84,000+ square kilometers, and a self-inflicted pay cut. Approx. 65 “Irish invention” jokes per hour.

In Singapore, his pay amounts to: An average golf club membership. If he doesn’t go for too many frills.

3rd Place: Barack Obama, President of the United States of America

Approximate salary: SGD $500,720 per annum
Needs to manage: Around 314 million people, 9.8 million+ square kilometers, Republicans, and the Free World.
In Singapore, his pay amounts to: His entire month’s pay cheque might cover the Cash Over Valuation of a resale flat (in a mature estate).

2nd Place: Donald Tsang, Chief Executive of Hong Kong

Approximate salary: SGD $642,173 per annum
Needs to manage: Just over 7 million people, 1,100+ square kilometers, more triad violence than a mongrel has fleas.
In Singapore, his pay amounts to: Something we’d consider “a good start”, every time we review the cost of living.

1st Place: Lee Hsien Loong, Prime Minister of Singapore

Approximate salary: $2.2 million per annum
Needs to manage: Around 5.1 million people, 710 square kilometers, high inflation, immigration issues.
His pay amounts to: About four or five other people on this list…combined.
But hey, we’ve got a safe, clean country. And if you’d like to spy on other people’s salaries some more,...

Know any other highly paid leader we missed? Comment and let us know!

Yahoo and Ryan Ong,  are you joking? Every one of our cabinet minister is earning more than the second highest political leader in the world. Even our ministers of state are earning more than him. Close my eyes I would say at least 30 political leaders in Singapore, unless our ministers and ministers of state are not political leaders, are earning more than Donald Tsang, the second highest in the whole world. And if I am not mistaken, even our parlimentary secretaries and mayors could also be earning more than him and Obama.

You want to know more? Ask the MPs how much they are earning.

And you may want to include the bonuses, if you are talking about per annum. Used to be up to 24 months plus 13th month and another month for leadership.

Being pro active or reactive?

Preventing racial enclaves forming has been a corner stone of our social harmony policy to avoid racial clashes like those happened in our past. This policy has been in force in the allocation of HDB flats to the citizens for years. Given an estimate ratio of 75/15/8/2 among the races, the distribution of ethnic groups in the housing estates is more or less in accordance with this formula.

Boon Wan has said that he is now studying the distribution of foreigners in HDB estates as the percentage in some blocks is as high as 9% or even 18%. Foo Mee Har had raised this as a concern early in the year and suggested a 10% cap to prevent tension among foreigners and locals. Boon Wan is still studying and will come out with the magic number in due course. Did they know that this will happen when HDB relax the policy on subletting to foreigners? Would they have thought about it earlier and come out with some numbers by being proactive?

The presence of huge numbers of foreigners and their peculiar customs could be uncomfortable and irritating. So too would our lifestyle be to them. The worse aspect is the security of the family members, the oldies, the young and the womenfolk in the presence of strange foreigners. We have just read a case of a foreigner that was driven into desperation to commit daylight robbery in Geylang. When they are comfortable, things may be peaceful. But things can get ugly when some of them got into drugs or gambling debt and would do anything to save themselves.

The other bigger problem is the enclaves of foreigners in private estates and condominiums. Is it acceptable to have foreigners forming a majority in private developments or even taking over the whole estate? Anyone thinking about this? Any proactive bugger starting to scratch his head? Or would they wait for something painful to happen before they put on their thinking cap?