Monday, December 16, 2013

Urban Legends

Myth #1: Aiming at Wrong Direction
The author, Colin Smith, debunks the myth that Singapore was lost because the guns were pointing the wrong way. Three 15-inch guns of the Johore battery at Changi - so named because Sultan Ibrahim of Johore paid for their upkeep - swiveled 180 degrees to fire at Yamashita's troops moving down the main road to Bukit Timah area, well within their 21-mile range. The armour piercing projectiles were meant to disembowel warships, but they could make holes bigger than suburban swimming pools, and much deeper.

Myth #2: Foreign Workers are Dumb
Han Fook Kwang - de facto ghostwriter of all those Lee Kuan Yew books - disabused all and sundry holding common misconception that foreign workers are illiterate and poorly educated. He tells of a student conducting a survey who was surprised when the construction worker interviewed read out the form in good English and filled up the questionnaire on his own. It's not lack of intelligence that compels a welder to accept $400 a month, it's the exploitation of labour by merciless agents, unscrupulous employers, and bureaucrats who turn a blind eye to rampant wrong doings for the "greater good" of economic growth.

Myth #3: Happiness Causes Riots
At an Asean summit meeting in Tokyo, Lee Hsien Loong said unhappiness among foreign workers did not trigger the Little India riot, "There is no tension, there is no sense of grievance or hardship or injustice". The riot was spontaneous and localised, with signs that alcohol was a factor, he insisted, making you wonder why he called for a Committee of Inquiry (COI) when he already had all the answers. Or why he chose to announce that “a substantial number of dormitories will be built over the next two to three years” to better house foreign workers. Or "We have to make sure they are well treated, they are paid properly on time, their safety is taken care of, their living conditions are up to standard, and they are given full protection of the law.” Seems an awful lot of work needed to be done for a group that's perfectly happy and contented. Maybe he's simply recycling his "we’re sorry we didn’t get it exactly right, but I hope you’ll understand and bear with us" speech.

According to government statistics, about a quarter of the country’s 5.4 million people are transient workers, compared to a tenth in 1990. The unhappy people on the Internet are expressing the contrarian view that sentiments of discontent have been simmering among both Singaporeans and workers in Singapore for some time now, and the lid might finally blow off, setting up what Shanmugan imagined as "(there is a) possibility of copycat acts."

19 comments:

  1. https://www.pap.org.sg/sites/all/themes/pap/images/piechart.jpg

    Everything they can bao-ka-liao they will bao-jiak.
    Everything on it is all sugar pie.
    Of course, the one thing missing is "can think" coherently which is missing lah.

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    1. http://www.casketfairprice.com/?no_redirect=true

      Agree. They even bao funeral service these days!!

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  2. Much sickening are happening in Sin simply bco it is run by sick people.

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  3. methinks the 'copycat acts' is pertaining to what PM Lee said in their #newwaybackward when the riots took place

    / In the next election, we will reinforce our team with more good men and women so just now, Comrade Khartini says "Kow Bei Kow Bu" (Hokkien for 'complain vigorously'), so if you are unhappy about something by all means let off steam at home and "Kow Bei Kow Bu", but don't stop there. Join the PAP, fight for what you believe in, change what is not good and help the "Zhenghu" ('Government') so that there is less need for other people to "Kow Bei Kow Bu".//

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  4. Not according to Mr Lui. The right direction forward is in his own words

    "The measures that MHA imposed on a temporary basis have helped to restore a sense of calm and order to the place. Going forward, we will have to tweak these measures so that, for everyone involved, Little India does become a better PLACE. (Police presence enhanced, Less Alcohol and Congestion, Enforcement tightened). "

    Would be fair to say a better PLACE would look more like (Pap presence reduced, Less Ah longs and Casinos and Extraordinary happiness returns.)

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    1. I have no doubt happiness of ordinary folks is inversely proportional to PAP presence. I believe the riot has shown how impotent the MIW are and I doubt they have the stomach to call in the army if they lose in 2016.

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    2. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cqkI691dxNg

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  5. Mr Tattler,

    One of the COI officer is an ex-police commissioner who also happens to be the subject of an expose by ICIJ, associated with an offshoring company that creates tax haven for wealthy people/company. How is his appointment relevant to the very poor workers here who are facing daily threats and harrassment from their middle-man and agents? Any thoughts?

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    1. Perhaps his connection is that those middle-man and agents park their monies here?

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    2. You must mean His Excellency Tee Tua-Ba, who was appointed new chairman to the Singapore branch of Portcullis TrustNet by Singaporean lawyer named David Chong who bought Trust net in 2004.
      The main product that TrustNet sells can be summarized in one word — secrecy.
      The firm helps ensure names, finances, business interests and political links remain hidden. It does this using a variety of methods, such as creating maze-like layers of companies and financial trusts in multiple countries and in many cases helping clients open overseas bank accounts in the names of anonymous companies rather than in their own names.
      Portcullis TrustNet gained widespread attention during the Offshore leaks financial scandal, in which an employee of the company's British Virgin Islands office allegedly leaked a cache of client account information to the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.

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  6. Building new dorms will cost the taxpayers how much? See, they create the problem, they propose the solution, you foot the bill, exactly like the $1.1b subsidy to SMRT after last years' strike. But construction of scores of dorms to house 1m workers now cramped in sardine tins will of course boost GDP growth la. And how timely, just when they suddenly realised the HDB CoV is turning negative and cow is scrambling to stop building HDB flats, the riots is a godsend by replacing HDB building with building workers' dorms. Ooof, next year strong GDP growth yet again!

    And in case some are still amazed at how many new BMWs and Jaguars on the road and long queues at lux condo launches, this post give the definitive answer. The contractor Ah Bengs and middlemen suppliers have replaced their hyundais with 6 and 7 series at same time as they replaced their older locals workers with exploited lowly-paid angry indian workers. But who cares, new cars and new houses bought by towkays boosted GDP growth right? You can never outsmart the papigs and civil servants, every turn they enrich themselves.

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  7. Judging by the panel selected, is clear they will frame this as a law and order issue, and nothing more. We don't see any social anthropologist sitting on the committee is there?

    When the #5daysinsummer riot took place in UK, one of their key findings by talking to rioters (researchers promised confidentially) it was revealed that they have a strong desire to attack the police.

    ---
    It is not surprising that those who felt there was nothing wrong with stealing or damaging other people's property also feel animosity towards the police.

    The police are the visible representation of law and order and when people feel they have no stake in society and that there is no need to conform to its norms and values, the police will be one focus for their anger and disappointment.

    We must address the underlying issues that lead to such alienation, like inequality, poor housing and unemployment. At the same time the police must accept that many people feel they are over-policed and under-protected. The police need to work a lot harder to convince some people that they are on the same side as the communities they serve.
    ---

    Dont hold your breadth for this kind of in-depth findings. What you will get is a washed out shallow report that will make their masters/ministries look good. Let's move on.

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  8. Its very frightening to discover how out of touch our so called elites are. After living in an ivory tower for too long it seems getting out is such a chore.

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    1. What to do? Even when the elites come down from their Ivory Tower to mingle among us commoners, they get huge discounts from govt fearing hawkers which warp the elites' sense of inflation and how hard life is for us.

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  9. They issued 374 alcohol licenses in that area and now they say alcohol is the contributing factor.

    They said FW are law abiding and commit less crimes than local population but no facts and figures to support that?

    They claimed no evidence to suggest workers' unhappiness but support the evidence by giving them more dormitories, protection and ice-creams.

    Soon after, we learnt that the urban hero is actually a fake zero. So much for DRUMs and falsehoods that went viral, self created by non other than MSM.

    Black they claim. White they also claim. The rest of us just have to go for the rainbow colors in between.

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    1. Exactly.

      Like 1st they say the 6.9m for the White Paper is only an estimate but their action later tell us the new land for housing, hospitals, etc. can cater for more ?

      Then 2nd they say the new rules will not target blogs but then later Breakfast Network is not allowed to blog on facebook.

      3rd they say they are going hard on online gambling but then later they announced online gambling will be allowed for Spore Pools.

      And now all this crap about FW riots nothing to do with their unhappiness at work even before the COI has completed their investigation work. It seems like they are making us wonder when are we going to believe their last word ?

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    2. In anything that Ah Loong says, you have to infer the actual meaning from what is not said, rather than from what is said. So when he builds more dormitories to better house foreign workers, do you believe it?

      Tattler: "Seems an awful lot of work needed to be done for a group that's perfectly happy and contented." Unless it is to house MORE foreign workers.

      Sneaky bugger. So bring on the 6.9 million or 8.0 million! After all, part of the self-denials are mostly to justify this. Without these people, all the work of their scholars on their URA Draft Master Plan 2013 will be for nothing.

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    3. Its time for the daft 60% to snap out of their dreams and start cracking.

      Continue to sleep more and you'll find yourself sleeping in tents along East Coast Park and without proper utilities, amongst Pinoy maids working hard, earning pocket money on the sidelines from inside neighbouring tents.

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  10. Coi coi coitus interruptus. Condos and nasi Padang going going gone.

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