Blogging credence

Blogging and cyberspace have taken a big leap forward in Malaysia. The ruling UMNO is taking the challenge of internet right by the horns and running with it. Instead of the typical running down of cyberspace, clamping it down with more rules and regulations and threats of using police power, UMNO has embraced cyberspace as a partner in connecting with the public. The latest development that demands an UMNO youth candidate to have a blog as a prerequisite to stand for election is revolutionary, and progressive. I must admit that I am startled by the move. But I must congratulate UMNO for facing the challenge head on and not behave like some wimps or spoilt brats and resort to the abuse of power to control cyberspace. Some Malaysian top bloggers were invited to share their experience in Singapore. They were defensive and played down on the impact of cyberspace on the Malaysian GE. There were many other factors involved that led to the big swing in votes. Cyberspace was only one of them. The reaction from the Singapore corner is quite expected. Oh, cyberspace is a rubbish dumb of misinformation or inaccurate information. The readers or public must be protected and only the msm could provide factual and accurate information. I wanted to laugh. There are misinformation and rubbish in cyberspace, no doubt about it. But not everything is rubbish. On the contrary, not everything in msm are accurate or factually correct. No misinformation in msm? Come off it. At this point in time, cyberspace is perceived as the enemy or potential enemy, the anti establishment rebels. The only cyberspace/blogs that are credible are those set up by the establishment. Why must a little criticism or disagreement in views be anti establishment? Why should it be when it is openly admitted that the best brains are so so and could make mistakes as well? The recent events and developments and back peddling stand as proof and vindication that opposition to unfavourable or badly thought out policies is a good thing and very necessary. _________________

Where are the political elite?

I grumbled a few times about the silence of our local elite on political and social matters except for the presence of Catherine Lim and Ngiam Tong Dow. Not much or nothing was heard from all those who could lend weight to an issue. Now, after reading what Conrad Raj had written in Today this morning, I found my answer. They are all hiding in local clubs, plotting and politiking against one another. 'They(clubs) also seem to be places where aspiring or frustrated politicians and lawyers try to exhibit their craft, much to the chagrin of other members. Litigation to assert their perceived rights is a common recourse.' Said Conrad Raj. How true. And being pragmatic people, raised in a culture of pragmatism, where else is a better and safer place to show how good they are? The opposition parties should make an attempt to infiltrate into these clubs and do their recruitments there. But then again, knowing the pragmatic mentality, these elite are unlikely to venture into anything riskier than the comfort zones provided by clubs. Nice hiding places.

Looking and planning ahead

Now that most of the major issues have been taken care off, Singaporeans should start looking ahead and plan for the future. And stop being complacent just because the govt has been doing all the thinking and planning. Old age problem has been solved, high medical fees also solved. Now the next one is high education cost. It is estimated, on the low side for the hard landers, that a 4 year university course will set a family back by $150k. This is for a local course. Go overseas is easily double that amount. So how are Singaporeans going to prepare for such a day? Are they doing anything? If they are not, if they are going to be complacent, then the govt will start to do the thinking again. And with so many pro active ministers thinking and caring for the citizens, some are already suggesting that some kind of annuity schemes may be coming out to make sure that the people will have money to provide for their children's education. It is another good thing coming our way. Anyway, whether the Singaporeans are going to think or plan for themselves it is immaterial. Any scheme that the govt conceived of will override whatever plans the Singaporeans have made for themselves. Just look ahead for a better day and more great schemes.

Obama and human rights violations

"ABC News: April 09, 2008 7:02 PM Obama Says Bush Should Boycott Olympics In his strongest language to date about the Olympics, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill., said that President Bush should boycott the opening ceremonies of if the Chinese do not take steps to stop the genocide in Darfur and respect the human rights of Tibetan people. "As I have communicated in public and to the President, it is past time for China to respect the human rights of the Tibetan people, to allow foreign journalists and diplomats access to the region, and to engage the Dalai Lama in meaningful talks about the future of Tibet," Obama said in a statement." When Obama speaks about human rights violation, the world must stand up to listen. He is a living tragedy of the worst human rights violations in human history. His forebears were hunted and caught, put under chains and sold in America as slaves. He knows what he is saying. It is written all over him.

More competition for Cashcards

It was reported in the ST that EZlink issued 8 mil cards while Nets issued 6 million cards. Both charged $5 per card while EZlink added a $3 deposit. So is EZlink card more expensive than Nets' Cashcard? The credit card issuers are planning to intrude into the cashcard biz. That may give consumers a wider option on whose card to use. Incidentally, credit card companies issued their cards free to their users. If they can do it, why can't the cashcard companies do likewise? Next time buy chicken rice, got to buy own plates and forks and spoons as well. But with 6/8 million cards each at $5 a piece that is $30 mil and $40 mil to each company. Too attractive to resist. Don't forget the $3 deposit or $24 mil collected and can be used for investment or collect more interest.

Greed as the driving force

This is an open secret. We have been moulding greed into a powerful weapon to drive the individuals and the economy. Or to put it in another way, Money as the driving force. This is a very practical and realist approach in getting people to work, to serve their own interest first and serving the general interest of society as an incidental consequence. Bring in the rich and let them make all the money they can. In so doing they also help to create jobs for the people in other services. The LKY School of Public Policies could sell this as a programme, teach the world how to harness the forces of greed and money and burn a glorious path to the first world. This is reality, not nice to have idealism. No beating around the bush. It is the Singapore model that works and works very well. People may counter argue that there are other models for development. But this is our model, Uniquely Singapore, and no other country has a system like ours. No one has anything close to ours. It is the one and only system that has worked and with a good track record to show.

Let's bury the story

The great escape from paradise. It is better to let it go as it is quite pointless talking about something that will eventually be the biggest mystery in paradise. And the tooth will never see the daylight. It would be better to look at the construction of a truly formidable Alcatraz of our own in one of the islands. We need one to make sure that flies can go in but can never fly out. Mount Pleasant is better torn down and forgotten. And in its place some huge private estates can be built for better monetary returns. As for Mas Selamat, if he is not caught within the first 2 hours, the reality is that he is not going to be caught. Save the breathe.

Another ugly case of monopoly

Nets charging $5 not refundable for a new card that has an expiry date. First, why must there be an expiry date if the card is in good condition? Many people bought more than one card, some kept as spares and hardly used. Secondly, is the $5 justified? Why allow only one organisation to monopolise the sale of such a card to the public when usage is almost unavoidable or near compulsory to some? Shouldn't there be some control or regulation over such a monopoly till alternative suppliers are in the market? It is like asking car owners to take MRT when there is only one MRT while better alternatives are not ready or available other than the snail buses.

High noon in Paradise

Below is a post I lifted from TOC. The post was dated April 9, yesterday. This is the 125 comments on this thread posted in TOC. It is more than 40 days after the great escape from paradise and the heat is still on. It is like high noon in paradise. Insulted Says: April 9, 2008 at 1:05 am I do not know about the rest but as a Singaporean I feel insulted. Yet I can do nothing as I have never had the chance to excercise by right to vote (mind you, I am in my mid 40s) because of governments efficiency in re-drawing boundaries and creating bigger GRCs. At the least I definitely do not feel humiliated, the 66.6% should, because they were complacent.

Paying for top grade rice

There was this restaurant that used to buy low grade rice. Over the years, as its business improved, it increased its budget for rice. Gradually it moved from low grade to medium grade, to top grade and to the best grade money could buy. It's budget for rice increased from $200 monthly to $2000. All was well and they kept telling their guests that the restaurant served the best grade rice in town. The bosses were happy, the customers were also happy. The most happy person was the master chef. He did all the purchasing. What the bosses and the customers did not know was that they were paying top dollars for the same low grade rice all the years. No one was wiser except the master chef.

No PM potential!

Hsien Loong must be having a hard time looking for a successor for the PM position. Even among the present batch of ministers, no one is likely to fit into that position. I think I know the answer to this problem. Hsien Loong must have discussed the topic with his colleagues. And very likely they all told him that they were not good enough or have no ambition to be the next PM. The problem thus lies in not having anyone with the ambition or aspiration to want to be the PM. This is the same problem as no one in his right mind wanting to stand for the Elected President. When no one want the job or think that they are good enough for the job, maybe with the exception of a few loonies in the opposition, we really have a replacement problem. How could Hsien Loong fire up the people, including his ministers, to be audacious enough to say they want to be the next PM?

Openness, dignity and integrity

'You cannot be a political party and be strong in a democracy when there is a strong disconnection between your message and what the populace is now about. And the populace is now about openness, dignity and integrity.' Dr Ooi Kee Beng, a fellow at the Institute of SE Asian Studies. Ooi was referring to UMNO and commented that the days of Barisan National is over.

$1 million solution to rising food prices

This has been touted as a nation wide scheme and the best stop gap measure to the food crisis. 'Community leaders say it is likely to be the best measure, although certain troubling questions will have to be addressed.' Lin YanQin reported. This is front page news, top news in the Today paper. Amy Khor feared that such a great scheme would breed the dependency mentality, a sense of entitlement. But Zaqy Mohamad and Fatimah Lateef were concerned that it might be too little and not enough. For $1 million and it is already a nation wide solution, imagine how much can the ministers can do with their $3 million pay cheques? If ten ministers were to offer $1 million each, we could avoid ten of such crisis nation wide.

Unprecedented public dressing down by LKY

After so much noise about the complacency slight, allow me to look at the issue from another perspective. This is probably the first time that the security agency has received a public dressing down by LKY. He made it very clear that it was their fault, their complacency. Unprecedented man. The second point he made was that the govt cannot take care of everything. There were areas that the govt may overlook, oversight or did not do well. Another unprecedented statement. And the third unprecedence, the govt is fallible. Oops. Now this is a very serious statement and admission from LKY, that the govt is not infallible. It was a time for humility and not to take things for granted. Now, did you people get the picture on complacency? A public dressing down, and an acknowledgement that things can go wrong and a govt that cannot be depended on completely. So the people must not be complacent and be vigilant, and must think and make wise choices. It must be looked at from this context. That is perhaps the furthest LKY could say, stopping short of saying that an alternative govt should be in waiting, just in case. When the govt is fallible, the people cannot afford to be complacent. Is that the correct message that I am getting? People must listen carefully when a wise man speaks.

An issue of complacency

The current issue of complacency is truly the fault of the people. And we shouldn't complain or blame the govt at all. We are so lucky to have such a good govt that we have taken everything for granted. If only that the govt is not as good and as efficient. Matilah, in mysingaporenews blog compared Singapore with Zimbabwe. Now that is unfair. You cannot compare paradise with hell. It is insulting to put us side by side with Zimbabwe and say we are good. We need to compare apple with apple. I would suggest that the govt sacrifice a GRC to the opposition and let them mess it up. Then the people will understand what it is like to be in a place that is badly governed. Using an opposition GRC is the best way to get a good and reasonable comparison. And no one can be complacent enough to say otherwise or use a bad example to compare with. This is the fault of being too good for too long that the people begin to take the goodness and efficiency for granted. Complacency is an understatement.

Rule of Law

Streetdirectory.com(Virtual Map) sued several users of its map in the past for huge sums of money for using its maps without authorisation. It was a great example of how rule of law are applied effectively in this country. Lately, Streetdirectory.com was sued by SLA for copyright violation, for using SLA maps without consent. It thus did not have the right of the maps which it claimed to have to sue those violators successfully. It has now decided that it would not refund the parties for unauthorised use of its maps. 'If there's anything we can do to lessen the pain of those who hate the company, please inform them to contact us. But we will not refund any money as the monies have gone back into building better products and services and running of the site.' Virtual Map MD Firdhaus Akber This is a strange declaration. Can Virtual Map still keep the money if they were awarded to them wrongfully? It is as good as money wrongly credited into someone's account and the recipient spent it and refused to return. Can those who were victims of Virtual Map claim back their money, legally, under the rule of law?

Bad hustlings in a democracy

Anyone reading what is happening in Malaysia will be full of praise of the democratic process and freedom of expression. Mahathir is openly accusing Abdullah, the PM, of nurturing corruption and cronyism. In return abdullah is saying that Mahathir is a hypocrite, that he was the one who imprisoned critcs without trial and curtailing press freedom during his rule. 'These were all his orders from time to time,' said Abdullah. I wonder what will happen if such statements were made in our rule of law country? Both of them will be suing each other to bankruptcy. This airing of dirty linen in the open is bad, bad for the individuals and bad for the party, and bad for democracy and freedom of expression. We should not have such things in our clean and faultless country. We need to spend our energy in development and making more money instead of squabbling big time. Thank god we are spared from such vibes and we can maintain a certain level of respectability and decorum.

Poor planning led to shortage of lawyers

The decision was made some 20 years ago to cut down on the number of lawyers through smaller student intakes. 'The decision to aribitrarily turn off the tap was grounded in some sound reasons, such as the desire to maintain the quality of the profession.' So said Conrad Raj. Can a decision be arbitrary and at the same time based on sound reasons? Arbitrary means arbitrary, boh lee yew. With sound reasons, must be well thought out. Whatever, the consequence is what we are facing, a shortage of lawyers, and indirectly a high legal fee, as shortage means high demand which means can command more pay. We are also facing a severe shortage of doctors and hospital beds. The latter we have talked about earlier and we know why. Well thought out reasons with intention to maintain a shortage. The lack of doctors could also be an arbitrary decision with sound reasons. It cannot be a case of poor planning. Planning is our forte. We are excellent planners and we are proactive, able to look into the future and anticipate problems. I think we should not be presumptious to deride our super talents for poor planning and lack of foresight. The problems we are facing are likely the result of good decisions that are coming back to haunt us. The decisions were good then, but bad now.

Myth 177

For the next 18 years or so, no one in their 40s and above today is good enough to be the PM of Singapore. Maybe this is not a myth but a newfound tooth. This sad state of affair is best reflected in PN Balji's article when he expressed fear in case of an emergency and no one is good enough to take over from the current PM. The next PM of Singapore will be found among those in the 30s today. So all the above 40s are has beens. Please do not feel slighted. It is the tooth. The other tooth is that Singaporeans may not even be the next PM. The best could be a quitter, a quitter from paradise or from any other country. Now this is more likely the truth. It only confirms our lack of locally born talents.

The ever changing wisdom

Singaporeans are perhaps the most adaptable and flexible people in the world. They are easily taught to change, even their mindset. In the 50s and 60s, they would all be looking forward to retirement at 55, to look after grandchildren or drinking kopi in the kopitiams. Today, this kind of mindset has changed. The new wisdom is to work till you drop dead. This model is built on a new reality, on independence, self worth and pride, and being useful to society. And also not being a burden to family and society. Not that the high cost of living has made life unsustainable if they have not money. The old wisdom was built on family as the building blocks of a country, filial piety, looking after parents and letting him have a rest, after years of toiling to bring up the children. It is time to live on the fruits of labour, to harvest, and enjoy the children and grandchildren. And the children feel proud to be able to provide for their parents aplenty. Dr Anne Chong Su Yan wrote a letter to the Sunday Times and this is the first paragraph. 'Recently, I was at a toilet in a shopping centre when I noticed an elderly woman with a bent and crooked back trying to clean the floor while fashionable young women applied their lipsticks and checked their hairdos in the mirror.' Good for her. She finally found out that in paradise there are such old people working in the toilets. It is better late than never. It would be shocking if one day she realised that there are poor people in paradise. The gist of her letter expressed her shock that old people were working in toilets instead of sleeping under the coconut trees on a beach chair watching the sunset. But have no pity on these old folks. They are living the new wisdom. Pride, independence, and work till they drop dead. Some ass holes may brutally tell the truth, that they deserved to be in that state because they were irresponsible and squandered their youth away. Having old people working in toilets and living an independent lifestyle is a lifestyle of choice. It is the pride of our nation. We have succeeded.