The first generation leaders were not afraid of contrarian ideas, and sparring with intellectual equals. For instance Toh Chin Chye, although over ruled, always maintained that health care should be free. What we have today is the perversion of preaching to the choir, preferably with a select audience with double digit IQs. "
Let's Think About It - Episode 2" opens up with a million dollar minister driving a small Japanese make. Maybe the Mrs has the other car, or COE has breached the stratosphere. Whatever, it really sets the stage for the credibility level.
This guy pays $1,800 for "professionals" and expects daft Singaporeans to respond in droves. Are we even on the same planet?
"Salaries are being compressed" - right on, brother. He may not be invited on another panel but truth, expressed with rare honesty, is always refreshing.
"To hire a foreigner is not cheap" - so why descriminate against home grown? Clue: predilection for aliens, even married one.
30% to 40% of his nursing staff are foreigners - and he wants more. He is probably tired of scolding Singaporeans for their “poor upbringing” just because some patrons did return their trays after dining at hawker centres.
Her half of Singaporeans won't slave long hours like her half of Vietnamese staff - Saigon has been renamed Ho Chi Minh City. Why not rename Singapore as Little Red Saigon?
"When was the last time we had a serious recession" - how the hell does he know? This fellow had a kevlar plated iron rice bowl since day one. Maybe when he is kicked out like George Yeo's GRC team, he will appreciate what it feels like to be displaced by foreign talents, armed with a resume padded with degree mill certificates.
"I foresee a day when Singaporeans may have to adjust" - not contented to play the movie role of a horrible person, this character starts to behave like one, talking down to a fellow Singaporean who dare justify hiring a domestic help to look after grandparents, parents and the kids while husband and wife slough it out in the workplace to make sure the Medishield Life premiums will be paid on time.
Fortunately, it's Friday and we don't have to put up with any more crap for the week. Instead, we can sit back and listen to Lea Salonga singing for her supper, with well-loved favourites from Miss Saigon, Les Misérables and Frozen. That's the way it should be, foreigners performing for us, not the other way round.
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Nice one, Tattler. You are too optimistic because you always take off during weekends. For the rest of the slaves there will be more crap at weekends. Don't you even notice that Lee Wei Ling is back to her weekly school essays?
ReplyDelete
Deletei don't because I don't read an OLD kid's stuff!
Carefully chosen panel.. its a joke.
ReplyDeleteAll sucking up.
They cant risk being examined too closely... or else they may just lose everything.
If anything, they could embrace higher ethical beliefs and pursue a policy of improving lives, skills and career for their employees. Instead, labour is merely a factor of production.
Yet, the product is no where a standard that we can recognise as quality. Make money and more... damn the workers.. they are such an annoying thing.
( but not a cent for process development, technology or innovative solutions)
I wonfer these media people know most if not half easily of their money comes from the PAP gov't since all media is under their control...and guess where the PAP gov't "gets" the money to "pay" all these media people...and how many media people in middle / upper mgt actually do a real living or work real productive hours on the resources taken from those who actually do the real work....hmmm...interesting no...
ReplyDeleteIn the earlier talk-cock hosted by Lawrence Wong, he claimed that some bank heads are Singaporeans, and that many banks may not set up shop in Singapore if they are unable to hire foreigners.
ReplyDeleteWhich coconnut shell has LW been hiding under? Just 20 years ago, most of the department/division heads of banks in Singapore are Singaporeans. Most of the top posts in foreign banks such as Citibank are locals.
The joke is that OCBC stands for Old Citi Bankers' Club.
Since the influx of foreigners had poured into Singapore, how many new banks have set up shop in Singapore?
There's a saying in Cantonese. If you dont have such a big head, then don't wear such a big hat.
ReplyDeleteAll these whining and complaining comes down to one root question that people have to ask their leaders? What's wrong with staying competitive with your current size of 3.5m? If you are so greedy, and keep wanting to make bigger pie, than of course you will need more people right? So it all boils down to the economics growth the PAP has to ask themselves - at what end will it be sufficient for you? From foreign service staffs to domestic helps etc, can ALL be traced back to their policies. IF you are greedy, even 7 to 10m is not going to pacify you.
http://io9.com/these-satellite-timelapses-show-just-how-much-our-plane-1705198895
By increasing population, consumption will also increase. This will accelerate the GDP.
DeleteNo prizes whose bonus is tied to GDP growth.
This approach requires zero brain work.
No need to work out details about education, skill sets or invite certain types of industries to set up shop here so that citizens have a job, career... too much brain work, obstacles, laws etc.
Easier to open doors and let employers choose.
No point in sorting out qualifications etc.. that job is being passed on to end user: employer.
Meanwhile, fix the oppositions and spin tales about how bad it can get without their wisdom and foresight. A much easier and fun task.
A civilization or society that eats away its own actual foundatons to feed more to non-productive "elites" and hangers on who do not contribute an iota of useful production for the whole....won't last. Pity the children in that future who will curse and willing to kill the present generation allowing this to happen...oh i forgot ONLY repetative stupid short sighted self serving parasites (not symbiotes) will cause this to happen...LOL.
ReplyDeleteHmmm..let's think about it. Here's the rebuttal for these people :
ReplyDelete- Most singaporeans have already gone beyond $1800 pm in this expensive city. That kind of rate is good for raising a family of 4 in your tier 3 countries. So yes, is time to think about it.
- Right on about having two breadwinners to support a family. And how does one leave the children at work if there's no in laws or maids? He should have tai-chi it to the Minister, why dont the state start building up a professional and well-run child care centers all over the island where parents can leave them and be at peace? Instead, what do we have? 1 maid for each households of what - 200,000? Even if you centralize some key childcare hubs, stop maid importing (only for critical and aged families) you will only need perhaps 10% of that 200k foreign labor here.
- Why discriminate home grown is a good question. IS not even fair to begin with, pitting home grown small shops/start ups against MNCs with the muscle and resources?! And it makes you wonder, why do even spend $36m on foreign scholarships when we don't even bond them to help grow our home grown businesses? No, I'm not talking about the home grown GLCs, but truly home grown brands and start ups? So we are giving free money and scholarships to these tier 2/3 barely good enough students to graduate so they can come out and open more hip/cool cafes/start ups to compete with local start ups , and continue this perpetual talents shortage & contest?
These are root and ancient problems created by PAP old policies, and they can't solve it now, and want to pass the blame to Singaporeans? Everyone has an education now, why should they be content to be a wait service staff? Such a duh comments it is truly unbelievable. To that point that they want Singaporeans NOT to do degrees anymore so they have more dumb-down wait staff to be in service industry?
Take a cue at the recent Shopping center (isetan?). Just open for 1 shift (decide if its afternoon or night) so that you only have to hire and handle staff for 1 roster. Reduce operating hours or reduce rents where most of your Reit-controlled landlords are the main reasons for your high cost of operation! How many shopping centers or cafes do you really need here selling the same things/stuff repeatedly?
"Singapore is too expensive? There is always a convenient licensed moneylender to ease your cost of living, and work hard like us you overentitled whiners" -PAP
Delete@26:55 She says her prime spot in Tokyo costs one third of the rent in Orchard Road - and she complains about Singapore worker salaries?
Delete5/22/2015 5:50 PM
DeleteBecause worker salaries are to blamed when Capitaland and their ilk with her sweet innocent PAP are engaging monopolistic real estate practices to jack rentals through the roof.
I guess this explains why "Salaries are being compressed", and who goes laughing to the bank while the slaves squabble over the scraps.
DeleteLiat chap is a malaysian quitter, just like cow etc. Nothing against Malaysians, me full of respect for the bersih crowd. Its just the quitters variety who rises to the top by their so called "tough talk" (translated scold silliporeans for being too demanding when the system they ran just break down from the failure to plan for the floodgate of FTs bogging down the system) ; and hey, its not me who coined the quitter word, its our beloved Mr Peanut ESM, ok!?
ReplyDeleteIf companies operating in Singapore want to hire more Alien Indians, then please relocate to India.
ReplyDeleteWe don't want them here if they do not benefit Singaporeans with their business operations.
Why add to our congestion and pollution?
I suggest we increase taxes on companies operating in Singapore who only hire Aliens.
DeletePlease relocate your companies to India, China and Philippines if you want to hire Aliens.
If you don't benefit Singaporeans, we don't want your company here in Singapore.
Actually one of the panel guests mentioned it herself. IF she has no problems getting very professional and service minded japanese workers (who are by the way first world too) and still become very profitable for her, bigger markets and lower rents, you have to wonder why is Singapore so exceptional isn't it? Why is it local tow-kays cannot make any of those cuts here instead? Higher rent, poor service (PM Lee say want ) and no enough workers?
ReplyDeleteSo what went wrong? It seems a no brainer why businesses shouldn't want to relocate to Japan? How come the leaders dont consider signing a CECA with japanese, and hire more japanese workers here instead? They truly are well-mannered, superbly professional and if they as a first world country workers are happy to accept $1800 and live here in SGP (on par with their country's cost of living) , then it would be win-win wouldn't it? The only barrier is language...but that can be easily over-come if you provide them english training. AFter all, we have had to put up with bad chinese service staff who couldn't speak english, or arrogant pinays who wants to take over us all etc...
If japanese workers don't want to come, go to Australia instead. Hire them and see if they want to come and work $1800 as service staff..no English training required.
IF all things being equal, and you still can't make a local business profitable, then isnt it time you look at the system that is created and the other factors (other than employee or singaporeans) to decide for yourself if its truly Singaporeans' faults?
"They truly are well-mannered, superbly professional and if they as a first world country workers are happy to accept $1800 and live here in SGP (on par with their country's cost of living) , then it would be win-win wouldn't it? "
DeleteI wonder if you can get a PAP minister or a grassloot leeder like this?
Ay any price, I doubt if you can get a PAP minister or a grassloot leeder like this.
Delete" truly are well-mannered, superbly professional and if they as a first world country workers are happy to accept $1800 and live here in SGP"
This panel is a complete joke - the panel members - how do they represent a comprehensive spectrum of Singaporeans affected by these issues? Most or almost all are owners of small businesses coupled with a politician and an actor? How is this panel selection even an inclusive one?
ReplyDeleteTotal waste of time - but then again, we are talking about PAP controlled mass media. So no surprise.
While all the other members of the panel kpkb about Singapore workers, Nachiappan was the only one who defended us. Way to go, bro. Especially this Loh character who incidentally is being investigated for hiring foreigners without valid work permits. Nachiappan disagreed with him, stunning the other panelists, when Loh called those with maids pampered, that having a maid is a luxury. And don't let me get into this NEA guy who has a habit of slamming Sinkies.
Delete"When Enough Is Never Enough" - What Do Millionaires Want?
ReplyDelete- Do you think this will help us better predict what our PAP Millionaires will do after PAP wins GE 2015?
SOURCE:
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-05-17/when-enough-never-enough-what-do-millionaires-want
Why not start with Tan Chuan Jin for another bout of pay-cut to be cheaper, better and faster or better still, ask him whether he is keen to work for the panel of "bosses" who are willing to pay him SGD1800 per month to work extra long hour like the vietamese. What say you Mr Tan? are you going to take the job or you probably are one of those workers who complained the pay is too low and family lifestyle will be sacrificed just like the whinner Grace Fu did. Frankly speaking, Mr Tan has started to make grave noise before the ministerial salary review even started. What a stage of stupid show when the minister himself is already setting an example for not willing to sacrifice much on pay-cut. Not that he is being paid SGD1800 per month but salary that even Obama can't match.
ReplyDeleteWhat we have is a sharecropper economy. What do you expect when the supposedly founding fathers worked for the invading Japanese who massacred locals and to this day feel proud about it. If selling out is a successful biz model, why not expand the concept when building a nation? Or rather, selling out a young nation's vitality piecemeal and than wholesale when the writing is on the wall.
ReplyDeleteTherefore train your kids to be rote learning automatons, preferably with small hands that can weld printed circuit boards non stop in Jurong. Make sure they learn English first rather than their mother tongues, so that the foreign MNC can utilize this "tamed, well trained" workforce. When that strategy is outdone in Malaysia build malls on every inch of land, raise rents on the tenants, and then import foreigners in the hope the increased footfall can support their rents. When rents get to high and the shop keeper fails, switch the tax system to one based on a sales tax, so income tax rate for the rich can come down and we can thus attract tax evading globe trotters to settle in Sentosa.
As for the Casinos, even a small town like Macau realizes that it needs to keep the high paying jobs for locals and utilize the gaming royalties to provide cheap healthcare. If we have to make $ with sin, the people who are impacted must benefit. Is this basic principle hard to understand? I wonder who keeps the rich royalties from our Gaming revenues that we have to implement Medishield Life, which is really a tax increase.
And off course we lack talent, I mean at the top. Setting up a casino is the recourse of the weak minded. Those who lack imagination resort only to Sin. What do the moralists that criticized Amos' upbringing think about Gambling? Again, the silence is deafenning. I mean this is corrupting and bankrupting you society on a big scale, don't you have something to add? Do you want your children to be card dealers or software engineers?
For all their combined brains and leadership qualities is importing population, real estate and gaming the only solution you can think of for an obviously uncompetitive nation?
Do you think that maybe his cancer is in the brain and not in his anus?
DeleteI think that woman ex-actress had a nose job done. I have seen her 'before' oicture. Go google. lol
ReplyDeleteThis show was worth watching. The debate was constructive, a long row of proposals from various voices.
ReplyDeleteComprehensive thoughts and ideas heard in the show. Hope this show can reach out to many more others in Singapore. Applause to this talk show for creating a rapport between us and the government. Hope to have more episode of it please.
ReplyDelete3 episode is definitely not enough for such informative concept TV talk show, we need more of it. There are still so many issues that can be touch on and be address further. I believe many people will be interested watching such an interesting talk show.
ReplyDeleteThe past few episode has been great, I think we really need more of this kind of platform to allow the government to address such current issue. This show offers a fresh, comprehensive, and discerning examination of politics in the media age. It will be good to have more episode with more other issues being address and cover. Good Show!
ReplyDeleteThis is a great and in-depth show that reflects our society nowadays and addresses deeply of many current issues the country is facing now. Excellent!
ReplyDeleteI am not a fan of talk shows, not to mention a show that seemed like a propaganda move from the government. But as I started watching, it kind of made me watch further. Some of the points that was mentioned in the show, I do have to agree on. There have been so many issues, complains, grumbling & negative feedbacks about foreigners in Singapore in the recent years. I have also read many negative and even rude comments on social media. It is good that they are open to discuss these issues on national tv, and the govt is actually listening too.
ReplyDeleteThe foreign talent issues may be going on for a while but is good that this show address this topic even more in-depth so that we can better understand and identify this issue even clearer.Hope this show can reach out to many more others in Singapore
ReplyDeleteWe should really have more of this kind of talk show to talk about current issues so that we can better understand what are the problem the government or the country is facing right now and understand the different perspective on the current social issues from speakers of all walks of life.
ReplyDeleteI am actually kind of surprised on how open the government is this time round, talking about foreign talent issue openly on national tv. I think this is a good approach, to be able to voice out our concerns, and be sure that the government gets to listen and have a better understanding on the problems. The show also covered some issues regarding our doubts, and it is good to know what kind of approach the government is taking.
ReplyDeleteSomething that the show mentioned about overly negative responds online is what attracts readers & that's how it turns into a vicious cycle. And come to think it, yes that is very true. People complain and spread negativity about foreign talents in Singapore, probably because of 1 or 2 incidents that happened. But neglecting the other 8,9 positive things that they did too. We have got to stop this bias-ness, and not let one black sheep affect our judgement.
ReplyDeleteEconomically, we do need foreign talents to come in and support. But it takes 2 hands to clap, and it takes both parties (foreigners and locals) to make the effort to work things out. Rather than blindly complain and slam anything and everything we see online, I would rather try to understand the situation now. And I think this show is a good platform for viewers to have a better understanding.
This talk show paints a clearer vision of this foreign talent phenomenon and allows us to understand this issue in different perspective. Not to deny, it is a very innovative and informative concept show.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed watching the interaction, and how they brought a lighter note on these issue. Quite entertaining.
ReplyDeleteJust look at all the construction sites. You can hardly spot a “fair-skinned” – are they really stealing the jobs otherwise done by locals?
ReplyDeleteAll the ministers has shared and give detailed information and sharing on the foreign talent issues that has been happening for quite a while. Smoothing out the rough edges of this problem is tough and is nice to hear this problem being bought up to be discuss in the show so that we know and understand better, regardless of from our perspective or from the government’s perspective. This is a great talk show to let us understand the direction the government is taking and carrying out.
ReplyDeleteDid not have high expectation of this kind of political talk show in the beginning, but the 3 episodes has change my opinion. It has allow me to gain insights on this future phenomenon which I felt that we should all be aware of since we live in Singapore. Not to deny, there are bound to be comments that we might not like to hear but there are also comments addressing the doubts that we have. We should be glad that the government is finally addressing this problem and not taking as though it does not exist at all. It is impossible to please everyone but we can at least allow most people to gain an insights over the topic addressed over the show.
ReplyDeleteIt is quite an insightful that is worth watching.
ReplyDeleteWhining is easy, how about you forming the government and manage the country?
ReplyDeletePeople comment negatively on this issue, how about going forward and try managing a country rather than staying behind the computer and making sarcastic comments.
ReplyDeleteThis is the sort of inane "movie critics shouldn't criticize movies because they don't make movies" argument that always cracks me up.
DeleteAny more nonsensical rebuttals from from the PAP IB syncophant army aka people who fail Logic 101 to defend their masters who chose to enter politics, who chose to paid themselves millions, who chose to play blame games when their policies fail?