India, how a big power should behave

India is still fuming mad over what the Americans had done to their consul in New York, Devyani Khobragade. The rough and humiliating handling of the consul were just too much to swallow. Despite several high level protests, the Americans are not backing off and not apologizing. India, an emerging superpower, is not going to take it with hands down.
 
The latest development to this ugly episode of American bullying is the curtailment of non diplomatic American staff visiting a club at the American embassy in New Delhi. India is putting a stop to this privilege that it had closed an eye for many years. The non diplomats will now not be allowed to enjoy the benefits of the American Community Support Association club.
 
This is how an emerging power should respond to bullying by the Americans, the Number One superpower. Countries of the world must not allowed themselves to be bullied by the Americans and must react and hit back at the Americans. If the international communities are firm and take concerted actions against the Americans, it would put a stop to their nonsense and bullying tactics.
 
China needs to learn from India. Its worst humiliation was the bombing of the Chinese Embassy by an American cruise missile in . China was and is still military very much weaker than the Americans and taking a tough stand against the Americans may be too premature and put it on a losing end. But it surely can mount pressure and kick the American’s ass by other means, like what India is doing. The Americans would definitely stop their nonsense or at least have to think very carefully before repeating the same humiliation against India.
 
China can only stop the American bullying by standing firm and be prepared to take counter measures. The flying of two B 52s heading into China during the ADIZ episode was another case of American bullying. China must put it in no uncertain terms that B 52s, because of their offensive nature and capability to launch nuclear bombs, will be shot down if they approach a certain distance from the Chinese coast. At the very least, Chinese fighters must be scrambled to intercept and force them to turnaround.
 
Every country in the world that is repeatedly being harassed and bullied by the Americans must adopt a united front to stop the Americans from their rogue behavior. Not doing so would only encourage the Americans to treat them like dirt. India shall take the lead and show the world how best to deal with the American bullying.

A novel idea to free up hospital beds

The hospitals have become a great place for R and R, great and comfortable environment, clean, sanitized and airconed. And there are so many pretty and young nurses to take care of the patients’ needs and recreation. Who doesn’t want to extend his stay in the hospitals when it is so luxurious and fun? The patients would be so happy and pampered in bed, why would they want to leave the hospitals?
 
I have a novel idea that is a win win for everyone. The nurses will be free to do other more important nursing work. The patients would not want to stay in the hospital for too long. And operation cost could come down too and with more beds to spare.
 
The magic formula, retrain and convert the uncles and aunties in the foodcourts who are very experience in cleaning tables, plates and bowls to clean the patients. They are so good in this cleaning job that with every swipe all the dirt will come off. And they can clean more patients in shorter time. And the cost of redesignating them as nurses will definitely be lower while they will get a higher income than be cleaners in the foodcourts and hawker centres. With better income they will be more enthusiastic and motivated to do a better job, better morale. Think they will also be more cheerful and less grouchy.
 
And the benefits for the hospitals will be higher turnover of patients, thus freeing the precious bed spaces for more deserving patients. And the Ah Mahs and Ah Kongs are less likely to be job hoppers and would work till they call it a day. This is a good case for raising productivity of the Ah Kong and Ah Mah nurses, the pretty nurses to doing real nursing jobs, and the hospitals with lesser problems of bed shortages since patients would be cleaned so fast that there would be no reason for them wanting to stay in the hospital a day longer.
 
What do you think, Gan Kim Yong?
 
PS. I got inspiration from Agongkia to write this piece.

Game of musical chairs?

The curse of public housing hurt many Sinkies real bad for at least a decade with the Minister of Housing claiming housing was affordable and drastically cutting down the building programme. A decade of denial finally succumbed to public pressure and anger that resulted in his departure from the cabinet. Many home buyers suffered for having to buy public flats at highly inflated prices. The damage caused by this foolishness will take its toll when the next major economic crisis hits.

Now where would the white knight be from to solve the housing crisis? No prize for guessing, the Minister of Health was the right man to solve a housing problem. Who says you need relevant experience in the right field to do a good job? What relevant experience was needed for someone from the Health Ministry to solve housing problems? Or shall I say the important factors are: right attitude, a little intelligence, a little common sense, and a will to do the right thing. A major part of the housing shortfall has been taken care of. The second problem is the high housing prices that were bloated during the decade of not building. How to solve this and who to solve this? Or it has become the new normal to be accepted by the young home buyers?

While Boon Wan is still working on the housing problem, a new problem surfaces, the shortfall of hospital beds. Of course, don’t expect the Minister of Health to solve this problem. Housing problem has to be solved by a Health Minister. So Health Ministry problem in the form of shortages of beds must be solved by someone from another ministry. Or should it be from the Housing Ministry, the Minister of Housing? Two Health Ministers have been on the seat and not knowing that there is a huge shortage of beds. They know or dunno? Maybe they know and waiting for it to go away with time or for a miracle to happen.

Now that the problem has exploded and cannot be hidden anymore, do they have other capable ministers to solve hospital beds problem? The Health Ministers are of no use as it has proven that under their watch the problem was not nipped in the bud.

There are also other big problems of immigration and employment waiting to be solved by the Minister of Manpower. Or should the white knight to solve this problem come from another ministry?

The public transportation problem is still not fully solved yet. How about getting the Transport Minister to solve Manpower and Immigration problems, and the Health Minister to solve transport problem, then the Manpower Minister can go and solve hospital bed shortfall problems?

Some of you may find this confusing but actually there is a simple logic to it. Those of you who have watch people playing chess will understand what I am going to say. Often the chess players are not as clear as the bystanders. People watching from outside often have a clearer picture of the mess and could see the problems clearer better than the incumbents. It is also called the fishbowl effect. The fish inside the bowl is part of the problem or are trapped in the problem. People looking at the fishbowl will have an overall view of what is happening. See, logical?

So this game of musical chair is good, really good. And no need whatever relevant experience or the usual craps. Just get someone with a little intelligence from the outside to deal with the problem. In a way it is like the foreign talent thing. The people inside cannot see or solve the problem, only foreigner talents can, even if they are faking the whole damn shit. Sorry I was exaggerating and being naughty on the shit part. And you can also see that Boon Wan now out of the Health Ministry could see the bed shortfall problems better than when he was there.

Get the picture?

One reason that can make the Jewel a destination

I want to claim copyright to this idea. As many have said, why the hell is there a need for another shopping mall in Changi when you have shopping malls all round the island and in all the terminals and all the airports around the world? Why don’t they think of something more innovative and less run of the mill type of ideas?
 
I think the Jewel can have a great chance of success if it is not just another ordinary shopping mall but a Jewel in the form of a Medical Mall. Sell it as a top notch medical centre with top notch facilities but Asian prices. And with its convenient location at the airport, it will be so convenient for medical tourists to have the best medical services at walking distance from the planes. Some day surgery patients could stop by, do their stuff and off they go in the same waiting plane or the next flight.
 
No need to elaborate too much as the attractiveness of such an idea, an excellent Medical Hub at the airport, is self explanatory.
 
What do you think CAG? No need to copy all the other malls as another shopping centre selling the same stuff. And yes, the Jewel will become a destination for medical tourists.

Why I like the MCE

The MCE is now flowing smoothly, thank you motorists for avoiding this expressway so that I can push my car to the limits without the congestion. It is now like driving in a Formula One circuit with the foot flat on the pedal. Whoosh, great freeway.
 
I also like to drive in a tunnel and enjoy the tunnel vision. In a tunnel, all you care or see is a little light at the end of the tunnel. Now I know what that means. Driving over and across the Benjamin Sheares Bridge may have a lot of beautiful sights to behold, the great scenery, the open space and the fresh air if the window is down, or for those with a soft top. But who cares, I just love the tunnel and the feeling of being in a well. Oops, I mean inside a tunnel. The only misgiving is to miss the sight of that multi billion awful fake garden, or is it a blessing?
 
And why not, now I can tell the world that I have driven on the world’s most expensive express way, the 8th Wonders of the World. The feeling is damn shiok, a wonderful feeling really, honest. For every metre of road travelled is like moving on a pile of money equivalent to $860,000! The sensation is really good, the money under my feet or wheels feeling. And I don’t mind the longer distance with more time to enjoy this great feeling. Lagi shiok. Never mind more tyre wear and burning a bit more gas. It is worth it, every cent of it.
 
Many Sinkies may not be able to afford the world’s most expensive cars. Now they can afford to drive on the world’s most expensive stretch of road. The feeling is just as good.
 
Funny, why do I have this great sinking feeling?

Why a GE in 2014 is highly probable?

No, this time it is not that the ground is sweet. It is very sour. Then why pushing for an early election when there are two more years to sit in comfort and drawing the comforting salaries plus bonuses? Well in two years time the situation would not be sour but fermented. Externally there is a bigger financial crisis waiting to explode leading to the break down of the whole banking and financial system and money would be worthless in a way. This would lead to an economic crisis leading to job losses worldwide and our housing market would simply collapse and people with huge mortgages got no where to run. But this is only a small factor in the consideration as it may or may not happen, or may happen much later.
 
What is more imminent is the threat of a split in PAP. As long as He is around the split would not happen. When He is not around, you can bet your last dollar it will happen. And when it happens, it will be the end of the party. Pardon my pun.
 
It is better to take a small bit, cut some losses and still be in power for another 5 years than to lose everything in two years’ time. This is the only major consideration in the game.
 
In the last GE, both MM and SM stood down and become ordinary MPs. The next GE, if it happens this year, will mean that both will not stand. The alternative, if the GE is held in 2016, there is a likelihood that Chok Tong may want to stand. He is still very young if we take 90 as the reference point. Chok Tong has another good 20 years to go. And if the Party is not going to field him, then a split is imminent given his support base and the number of MPs willing to follow his leadership.
 
Now, that would be a nightmare surely.
 
So, would it be 2014 or 2016?

Do not meddle with our money. You need our consent!

The increasing frequency in the govt meddling with the people’s savings in the CPF is not a joke anymore. It concerns hundreds of thousands of an individual’s life savings that they earned through blood, sweat and tears. No one, not the govt, should think it can take liberty with the people’s life savings under whatever excuses. It is simply not the govt’s money. No one shall be allowed to decide how much of the people’s money to be held back almost indefinitely or how to spend it by compulsory schemes other than the owners of the money. How could anyone think he could do that with other people’s money without the owner’s consent? It is not your grandfather’s money you know?
 
This is not your money. This is the people’s money, individuals out there who earned it. If the money were given to the people by whatever bonuses from govt surpluses, fair enough, the govt can decide how and where it should go to. The people did not elect a govt to mess around with their life savings. This message must be brought to bear on the govt, that they better back off from the people’s savings, and if they insist to ignore this, they should be voted out.
 
Any political party that comes to power must be made to respect the people’s right to their money. This is something that bothers on human rights, the right to one’s safety, liberty and possession. Who is so outrageous to think that the people’s money is for them to do as they wished?
If the present govt is mistaken, that the people indeed elected them to mess around with their money, the people must make this known to the govt that this is not so, must not be so.
 
How on earth could this happen for so long and the amount that are kept away from the people’s reach is getting so huge and so unreasonable? The message to the govt must be loud and clear, return our money as promised. This govt is getting carried away by what it thinks it is within its right to do so just by passing laws in Parliament. Worse, now they don’t even need to discuss in the Parliament or pass any law on what they want to do with the people’s savings. They just change the rules as they deemed fit.
 
Can you beat that? Are you going to accept it meekly? The time has come to say NO to the govt. The people’s money in the CPF is OB to the govt. It is sacrosanct, the sacred right of the owners.