Trickle Up Economics in Singapore; Stakeholders Vs Shareholders

Income inequality for S'pore is either the worst or 2nd worst among the developed economies. Goods & Services Tax was raised from 5% to 7% & the reason given was to help the needy. Yet as the years go by, more & more people are in tight financial situation. We now have more & more charity shows to raise $$$ for the needy.

The following 2 charts are about USA but it applies well to S'pore.

Notice the Top 1% Income skyrockets during the mid 90s. It is no coincidence that S'pore's Pro Alien Party mutated around that time as well as i've written in Mutation of PAP as Seen from S&P500 Index

Trickle down? What Trickle down? Wake up folks. It is tricke UP.

The public transport debacle has awoken the masses as to the meaning of trickle UP economics:

• $1.1B from taxpayers to buy buses for private bus companies.
• Up fares from average joes (citizens aka stakeholders) to pay for salary increases for bus drivers (they get peanuts while bulk goes to shareholders)

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Related:
More gravity defying stunts.
- How Come GDP UP UP UP Yet More & More People Need Charity?

Sinkies Least Positive in World After Most Emotionless

Workers in other countries can crush the workers in S'pore very easily.

Past few days have seen a flurry of reports about the "much vaulted S'pore workforce". I love the polls by Gallup(independent). It is helping to 'awaken' the sleeping masses indoctrinated about gdp growth by the ruling hybrid regime.

Growing the gdp at all costs like cancer by the million $ salary scholar ministers has produced:

• SG is least emotional country in world.
• Sinkies least positive in world.

Summing them up as follows:

1 in 5 workers fake illness to get an MC, headache most common excuse

• 20% of workers fake illness to get an MC, headache most common excuse
• Top 3 most common excuses: Headache/giddiness (41.5%), diarrhoea/food poisoning (18.3%) & stomach cramps (10.7%).
• 10% would get fake medical certificates at least 3x a year
• 3,299 employees & 256 hiring managers polled
• More than 7 in 10 bosses check by asking for MCs

Many workers in S'pore have 14 days of annual leave or less. Coupled with long hours--->burnout. MCs are an outlet for employees to avoid using the precious 14 days which are usually reserved for vacations.

 

Bus drivers hired from China by SMRT for their cheap wages encashes their annual leave for $$$. It is the same for lowly paid sinkies & i've done it as well when living costs are rising relentlessly. I was burnout at end of year without taking any MCs nor annual leave.

 

Smart bosses would reward workers for not taking MCs every month. It causes less disruption to work processes & staff morale.

 

 

More employers offering work-life arrangements

• In 2012, 41% of establishments offered at least 1 form of work-life arrangement, up from 38% in 2011.
• Working part-time was most common work-life arrangement offered by 33% of companies.
• Distant 2nd was flexitime (8.2%), followed by staggered hours (7.5%) & tele-working (4.0%).
• 3,500 establishments survetyed in private sector -- each with at least 25 employees & the public sector
• 5-day work-weeks continue to be the norm, with 44%. Shift work (17%), 6-day (18%) & 5-1/2-day work-week (14%).

"Recently, there have been some reports that S'pore is the least emotional country in the world, and that S'pore workers are the most unhappy. So, I think companies need to go down to the root of all these & find out how best to reverse the trend"-Ronald Lee

Is utter pathetic that working part-time is considered as work-life arrangement. In this internet age, tele-working ought to be more to elevate time wasted in traffic jams, pollution & congested lunch crowds.

5, 5.5 or 6 days is not an accurate indicator. No. of hours work should be. No point having a 5 day workweek when the workers is approaching burnout working 10hours a day.

70% of workers intend to change jobs next year

• 7 in 10 are still intending to change jobs in 2013.
• Salary & job advancement identified as top pull factors for job change.
• Majority of 550 respondents singled out 1st quarter as best time to start a job hunt.

1st quarter = crowd mentality. It is the period when competition is strongest.


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Related:
I've been hammering the pathetic plight ad nauseam 

- 98% of S'pore Workers Are 'Bochup' aka Disengaged in 2010
- 'Zombie' Workers - Plenty of Them In S'pore
- S'pore 2nd Lowest Globally for Job Satisfaction

Mum Was Hospitalised Due to Pancreatitis

Mum was hospitalised on Mon night for pancreatitis - gallstones obstruction in pancreas. I sent my mum to hospital by taxi. Had a grueling 3.5hours wait(brought a book to read) at A&E area before a nurse brought me in to see my mum. I had dinner(more like supper) around midnight upon reaching home. Can't finish the food due to lack of appetite- leftovers became breakfast.

I only know my mum's condition is pancreatitis from the Dr's update on Tues afternoon (blood tests, xray, CT scan). Before that my mum thought she had gastric pain- she visited 2 general practitioners & at polyclinic (advised a blood test but she didn't take).

"Nothing by mouth" is indicated above her bed as anything injested by mouth would worsen her condition. Operation to remove the gallstones was performed on Wed morning. Gallstones were sucked out via a tube inserted through the mouth. Performed by a senior Dr though i chose 'C' class ward for my mum. Is a myth that 'C' class patients are treated by 'lesser Drs'.

My mum was discharged on thurs morning after a day of observation.

There are 2 issues i want to point out: Taxi driver & shortage of hospital beds.

Taxi Driver
Fuck the Pro Alien Party! Before the ride to hospital, i have not taken a taxi for like 3-4 years. The taxi driver doesn't know the way to the nearest hospital- NUH. I became his navigator telling him turn left, turn right etc. Apparently the driver who is less than 45 years old is another victim of PAP's open floodgate policy-being replaced by cheaper, younger foreign worker.

To think the state propaganda machine publish the $7000/mth taxi driver in Oct. When such bombastic shit is being spewed out by the hybrid regime, it can only mean 1 thing - many sinkies are replaced/displaced by cheaper foreigners.

Taxi driver desperate to make a living. Don't know the way, ask passenger(me) to guide him. I don't blame him.

Shortage of Hospital Beds
There is no water nor electricity shortage in S'pore (which power Pro Alien Party's profit making machines) despite importing & importing so many people to squeeze into this tiny island.

However there is hospital beds, public housing shortage. My mum told me she's admitted to the ward at around 5am. So the waiting time for free bed is 5-6 hours. I want to stress again this is deliberately done by the Pro Alien Party to screw the populace. How the daft 60% would vote for a ruling party in 2011 that keep screwing them is beyond me.

At the A&E waiting area, there is a big signage with newspaper articles about the bed crunch to remind those waiting outside. Once led inside by the nurse after the long wait, i saw my mum(stabilised) on a trolley bed along with 14 others lying in this 'holding area' waiting for a bed. I don't know if that's the only holding area in A&E. If there is another 1, it means there might be like 30 patients lying there waiting for a bed......



With these 2 issues that hit me, it strengthens my resolve to vote even for a monkey in 2016 as long as is not from the Pro Alien Party. At least the monkey don't make the situation worse & worse unlike the 'scholars dressed in white' with mediocre performance leeching million $ salaries from taxpayers.

People-Centric State Capitalism Vs Profit-Centric State Capitalism

The incumbent ruling party of S'pore- PAP, which i often use the term Pro Alien Party is also known as Party Against People by some others. There is validity in being dubbed Party Against People for reasons we shall see.

CN: Characteristic of China's state capitalism by economist Graeme Maxton.
SG: Sinkieland state capitalism style currently based on my observations.

Here we go with the comparisons:

State Capitalism
CN & SG: State controlled or at least state directed (i see this as only commonality).

$$$
CN: Profit is less of a motivating factor
SG: Maximise profits at all costs. The heck with safety(public transport) or suppression of sinkie wages with cheaper foreign workers.

Getting Customers
CN: Customer base often provided. eg in rail business, contracts offered only to local companies.
SG: Captive market provided & greed greed greed via massive imports of foreign workers aka customers to maximise profits at all costs. However contracts more fair as offered to foreign companies.

Treatment of Own Citizens
CN: Ensure skills, jobs & wealth are kept at home, not sucked away by foreign-devil employers.
SG: Many skills, jobs, wealth lost as sinkies replaced/displaced by cheaper foreign workers later to be brought back to their home countries.

Technology
CN: Technology often provided by state thus removing R&D costs. Or techology 'leached' from foreign companies then localized.
SG: I have no comments about technology but with regards to leaching, Suzhou Industrial Park is good example of chinese local officials 'leaching' & then setting up rivaling industrial park & screw SG.

Grabbing Dwindling Resources
CN: When chinese companies go abroad, state is behind them to gain access to world's resources.
SG: What resources like mines, farmland in other countries have SG govt-linked companies gain? I see them buying shares(buy high sell low) in other foreign companies.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
"For China, these are strategic investments, a way to beat their opponents in business & win geopolitical influence at the same time. Western companies say it is unfair competition. The chinese model is not wrong. It is just different. It does not depend on free market & profit to survive."-Graeme Maxton

Rivalry: Chinese model Vs Western model
CN: When chinese state owned companies make bid to build infrastructure in other countries, the state or 1 of its banks will provide low-cost financing, while chinese companies provide low cost labor making it impossible for rival European or US bidders to compete.
SG/western model: Unable to comment on infrastructure since SG govt-linked companies don't seek profits in building infrastructure in foreign countries.
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

It is apparently clear that the people-centric model is much more sustainable than the profit-centric one. Is common sense for the Communist Party of China to treat its citizens well in order to stay in power.

The tide is turning against Party Against People populated with scholars drawing $M salaries.



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Related:
I wrote about hidden dangers of cheap (observations again by economist Graeme Maxton) back in May. 6 months later in Nov, some chinese bus drivers hired to work in SG because of cheap wages--> strike

I'm glad it exploded in the face of Party Against People/Pro Alien Party.

- Cheap Chinese Workers? Got Hidden High Price

Deported go back to China, their govt is people-centric to them.

How to Figure Out Your Worth to a Company

Companies need profits in order to continue operating. At the bare minimum, cash coming in must equal cash going out.

Perverse form of state capitalism S'pore style in which the state has open the floodgates to hordes of cheaper foreign workers to boost profits of state owned companies has led to depressed/stagnant salaries as well as loss of skills/experience when locals are displaced.

Workers not in cashing generating job roles are more at risk as these workers are considered as costs/expenses by the company. Even for workers bringing in the cash, they have to make sure that the amount of $$ they bring in justify their salaries.

Let's take example of a company selling kids shoes -Kiddy shoes

• Raw material to make kiddy shoes $3
• Assembles raw materials into shoes $4
• Transport shoes to retailers $1.50

--------------------------------

Total: $8.50

Retailer buy shoes at $22.50 thus Kiddy Shoes company makes $14/shoe profit. This $14 is gross margin. This is how much Kiddy Shoes Company earn after raw materials, assembly & transportation.

Then salaries need to be paid. Surpose a sales executive in Kiddy Shoes Company has salary of $4,000. As the company has 62% ($14 out of $22.50) as its gross margin, it has to generate $6,429 ($4000 divided by 0.622) in sales.

Companies have to cover more than salaries alone. There's medical, dental, employer retirement contribution, annual leave, maternity/paternity leave etc. Typical the extra costs range from 17 to 50% of salary. Let's assume Kiddy Shoes has to fork out an extra 25% of salary for worker benefits.

=================
$4000 Salary
+ $1000 (25% extra of salary for worker benefits)
$5000 is what Kiddy Shoes must fork out to pay sales executive.
=================

All cash to pay salary comes from customers & not from your boss. I know some boss are a pain in the ass & i've experienced them too. For $5000, the company has to sell $8038 ($5000 divided by 0.622 gross margin) worth of shoes. Hence the sales executive has $8038 as sales target to keep his/her job.

Those workers earning $4000 in supporting/backend roles need to find a way (much harder to do) to justify saving/contributing $8038 to keep their jobs which is why many bosses view them as costs/expenses.

As a rule of thumb, many employers assume 2x additional sales of salary to justify the person's salary. Thus, $96,000 in extra sales needed to cover full costs of employee with salary of $48,000/year.

Depending on industry and/or gross margin, it might be 3x instead of 2x.

Of course the above is just a simple way of justifying salaries but it provides a good sense of how to determine a worker's worth & salaries/fees.

Saving 25% of Take-Home Salary Beats Net Profit Margin of DOW

Personal finance books recommend saving at least 10% of paycheck. Personally i consider that low in S'pore's context of job misery suffered by many including me. In the past i'm a mad saver leaving very little $$ for enjoyment. Back then my mentality is since so much time in job misery it makes no sense for me to blow $$ on unnecessary purchases leaving me further trap in the rat race.

Many western economists call on the chinese to spend more to help stimulate the global economy as they are saving too much. In China, the average savings rate of urban households is 29% in 2009. If we compare the average chinese savings rate to the net profit margin of the companies that make up the DOW index, the chinese wins hands-down with their 29%.


Net profit margin (%) of last financial year:

Simplistic formula:
Net Profit Margin (Companies) is what's left after deducting costs, utilities, salaries, rent etc
Net Profit Margin (worker) is what's left after deducting our bills, living expenses etc

Now let's look at 2 more companies:

• Luxury good maker Louis Vuitton 14.76%
• Current iPhone craze Apple 26.67%

Still the average chinese trumps the above 2. The mindset of the average chinese is worth emulating. Those chinese saving 33% of their paychecks is like working 2 months & accumulating 1 month of freedom. The few who save 50% is like working 1 month & accumulating 1 month of freedom.

Unfortunately many sinkies are hooked to retail therapy as a way to spend their way out of their job misery - a form of short-term happiness via a purchase.



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Related:
Retail therapy doesn't work long term. Is misery galore.

- 98% of S'pore Workers Are 'Bochup' aka Disengaged in 2010
- 'Zombie' Workers - Plenty of Them In S'pore
- S'pore 2nd Lowest Globally for Job Satisfaction

Solar Bottle Lights -No Electricity or Solar Panel Needed

Before the cloth covering the top is removed:

Wow! Free light. No need electricity. Light refraction.

Conceived by students at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), it does wonders to those living in developing countries.

So simple formula:

• Fill bottle with water.
• Add 2-3 spoonful of bleach (prevent bacteria & algae)
• Drill a hole in metal sheet roof, fix bottle & seal it.

Too bad sinkies can't do it except a handful of those living in the offshore island of Pulau Ubin. S'pore has 1 of the highest electricity rates in the world. Price hikes are frequent & thus a pain in the ass. However i do understand the need to price electricity appropriately so as to avoid wastage given the dire building up of greenhouse gases on the planet.

Electricity Rates around the world - i'm utterly shocked that Brazil, the Philippines, Solomon Islands & Tongo have electricity at least 37% more expensive than S'pore at time of this writing. Electricity is a luxury in those countries given the income level of their general populace.

SOLAR bottle light as its name indicate it depends on sunlight. When is at night is back to kerosene lamps or whatever for those folks. Nevertheless being free & so cheap & environmentally friendly the upside far outweight the 'doesn't work at night' downside.

15 Years Later & 27% of Top Performers in DOW Are Gone

The Ministry of Education likes to trumpet the high scorers of the Primary Sch Leaving Exam & 'O','A' levels. It is a welcome move that it no longer publishes the high scorers of PSLE. I consider the obsession with grades nauseating.

Those parents who still support the naming of top scorers to serve as role models are brainwashed by the rote-learning system. Instead of being inspired by role-models, kids & parents are more stressed. There is no need to damage kids's self-esteem at young age so as to serve as compliant, cheap cogs in the economic machine.

What the govt-controlled media dare not publish is what happen to the top scorers many years down the road. Of course with the screwups by the 'top scholars' in govt, it is apparently clear that grades are not a good indicator of performance later in life. Even if those top scorers are doing well, they may not be happy in their professions.

Personally for my secondary school classmates, there are good scorers now 'not-in-good shape' & poor scorers doing ok.

Even for companies, being dropped is common. Let's just take 15 years of the DOW & we can see that 27% of the companies are dropped/replaced (pink circles).

Some of those big companies such as well-known Kodak & General Motors are no longer in the DOW index.

Now for some simple maths:

Current ruling govt in power for 47 years since independence.

• 15 years & 27% of top performers in DOW are gone.
• 47 years & 85% of top performing ministers are gone (actually is higher)

====================================================
Related:
- Mad Chase for 'Toilet Paper' Certs
- Rich Son Poor Son

New Zealand Airline's Middle Earth Theme Safety Video

Just stumbled upon this New Zealand airline's Middle Earth theme safety video. Turns something monotonous into fun.

• Command full attention.
• So creative.
• Kill 2 birds with 1 stone-promoting Tolkien tourism too.
• Promotion for movie via airline.
• Tempoary unique feature of New Zealand Airline

Almost 10M views in 5 weeks-fastest record i've ever seen(at time of this writing). This is a fine example on people being 'pulled' effortlessly into viewing an otherwise boring safety video.

Foreign Workers Protest -2nd in 2 weeks

2 foreign workers from China perched themselves on cranes to protest over owed wages. 2nd incident after the bus drivers strike last week.

This is superb news. More dirty linen against the current hybrid regime out in the open. Books i've read often praise the economic prowess of S'pore & i wonder if those authors have live or been to S'pore before. I seriously doubt those writers know that the gdp prowess after year 2000 is done on the backs of massive influx of cheap foreign labor which has a deterimental effect on the native populace.

Ministry of Manpower(MOM) has ran the workers rights commercial on tv in oct, nov before the strikes. Although i don't watch tv, i can still hear commercials in my room when my parents watch news. The workers rights commercial intrigued me because i know if such educational commercial exist on tv, it can only mean the workers abuse/exploitation be it locals or foreigners is very bad already.

Darn pathetic situation. This is the english version on tv:

• Didn't get CPF(a form of forced retirement savings)
• Pay cut even with valid medical certificate
• Don't know if allowed to take leave

3rd world wages in 1st world economy. Exploited until like that. Is utter shameless that the current govt leaders pay themselves obscene salaries for the slew of hardship they inflicted on much of the populace. The boss in the educational ad irks me tremendously. I can't stand working under these type of idiotic bosses.



Sinkies being generally a docile & meek bunch- nothing happen(keep quiet & suffer). Ain't the same for foreign workers when the diplomatic avenues don't work- they protest.

I support their protest actions.

1st strike - bus drivers request for equal salary as Msian drivers fell on deaf ears
2nd protest - construction workers owed wages & complain to MOM-nothing
?????
?????
?????

As J Paul Getty wrote in his 1st opening paragraph on Chapter: Labor in his book 'How to Be Rich':

Living with, working with labor-not fighting it or ignoring it-should be an assumed obligation of the business executive. Success & profits can be gained more easily & happily with labor's honest cooperation than without it. This should all be obvious but deplorably few businessmen see labor relations as anything but an obstacle.

-----------------------------------
Related:
- S'pore's 1st Workers Strike in 20+ Years

"Worldclass champion" workforce:
- 98% of S'pore Workers Are 'Bochup' aka Disengaged in 2010
- 'Zombie' Workers - Plenty of Them In S'pore
- S'pore 2nd Lowest Globally for Job Satisfaction

Leadership of Lowly Educated Bus Driver Vs 3 Star General's

I wrote on Thursday about the ridiculous salary of CEOs vs pathetic bus driver salaries. On friday the 3-star general CEO of SMRT visited the workers to better understand the situation. It turns out the 3-star general dare not visit Woodlands worker dormitorys but went to Serangoon's instead. The strike by the poorly uneducated bus drivers is really eye opening in showing how the 3-star scholar general deal with the issue.

Those Pa Pas & Ma Mas who are brainwashed about continuing with the system to name exam top scorers need to wake up. This is the type of top scorers......

Country is deteriorating with those scholar generals ministers. Public transport deteriorating too with this 3-star scholar general. Yet they pay themselves high salaries delivering poor performance.



I like this netizen's comment:

Let's look at what is writing from the heart. This ought to be my 1st time reading chinese text written from the heart(keeping a copy here) as all throughout school i read 'sterile chinese text' from textbooks. After many years out of school i have difficulty reading huge blocks of chinese text although i come from a chinese speaking family.

Extracted from TRE.
===================================
（中国籍车长的尊严何在）
致全体在新加坡（SMRT）的中国籍车长的公开信：
我尊敬的同胞们，来新加坡这段时间里（不管时间长的还是时间短的） 大家内心有何感受，是否有种自已的尊严被践踏的感觉，所在的企业或公司管理层把我们看低一等。
甚至于连马来华人都为我们鸣不平，而我们自身却只能沉默无助的面对（这是我们自已的选择），凭什么？？？？凭什么？？？？啊！大家同为外国来新劳动力，凭什么马来西亚公民要比中国公民高一等（撇开新加坡本地人不讲）。马来籍车长工资1400多，中国籍车长1000多点，基本工资相差几百块；马来籍有分红，中国籍没有分红。难道我们做的工作内容不一样吗？干得不如人家好吗？我们没有更好的服从公司的管理吗？马来籍车长下雨天说不来就不来，包括平时也一样，这一点大家应该都知道吧，造成的人手空缺由谁来补，还不是我们中国籍车长。而平时大家打电话问配工部要加班的时候，情况是怎样的呢？大家心里想想？

如果换做中国籍车长你不拿MC，累计两天不上班（请个事假都难吧）？算你旷工，还有权利给你警告和处罚。我就弄不懂了那么多马来人在那么多个下雨天不来上班是什么理由？同样是人SMRT的领导处理结果的差距咋就那么大呢？我们这些人是在给你们当苦力当劳力啊！你们的良心何在，有一点人情味吗？不要说你们也是华人了，他娘的连洋人对中国人的态度好都没有。大家说是不是，还有我确定新加坡有一部分其它公司的中国人的待遇比印度人和马来人要好，人家的老板认为中国人听话好管理，做工认真没那么破事，这就足够了。说起分红的事，不得不说SBS的中国籍车长也都有分红，不管马来人中国人一视同仁。为什么你SMRT就要看扁中国人，他娘的这是为什么？到底是为了什么了啊！

我的兄弟姐妹们啊，我们真的伤不起啊，SMRT领导的“良心有没有，你们的良心狗叼走”。而我们呢不能算来算去算来去总是算到彻底放弃吧！我们是不是应该做点什么啊？我肯定他们内心想法只有一种可能，就是SMRT的领导根本不知道我们这些中国籍车长的诉求（也可能知道装糊涂），但是他们可以肯定的是确实没有看到我们为了达到自已的诉求所持有的信心和决心，因为中国人没反应啊，想怎么捏就怎么捏，无所谓啦，所以他们对我们所做出的决定也就不分错与对了。

很显然，他们认为他妈的中国人真多，去一趟就能招来几百号人，用完了，不听话了就滚蛋，这种模式挺受用。就算有几个人出尖的，不听话的让他滚蛋走人，这点大家是不是也这么想的所以都会选择沉默了。但我们为什么不反过想一下，如果几百号中国人一起出尖，恐怕滚蛋走人的就是SMRT的领导了，新加坡的交通状况我们又不是不知道，弄几天几百号巴士司机不上班，新加坡全城沸腾，什么《联合早报》《我报》英文报——通通的都给我伺候着，登呗、评论呗是什么原因造成的，陆交局立马得出面调查，问询SMRT。

我泱泱中华大地，孕育出来的都是峥峥硬骨，今日是之新中国非往昔之旧中国。就连“韬光养晦”一向保守、隐忍的中国政府现在对外都忍无可忍了，姿态越来越强硬；何况我们这些堂堂五尺之躯，血气方刚的男儿，更应该挺起腰板做人，活出我们身为中国人的精神面貌和尊严。自已不给自已尊严，何来让别人给你尊严。中国人的尊严是要靠我们自已争取来的，不需别人给，更不需别人施舍，彻底让那些瞧不起中国人的人丢掉那些老套的观念。见他娘的鬼的了，凭什么中国人就应该处处受气，老子也没那样的基因呀！有什么了不起的。老子也没干什么违法的事，所有的一切无非是些再合理不过的要求，追求和其它人一样平等的权利总该有吧。没什么好怕的，没那么邪乎！醒醒吧兄弟姐妹们，人心齐、泰山移。行动成就梦想，没有行动别只望别人会可怜我们，帮助我们。我们自已的事情永远只能靠我们自已，自已不去做、不参与，你在等谁替你做。我就不明白了做人的差距有那么大吗？？？？真的有那么大吗？？？？？？？？

发生在眼前的事情大家应该都还没忘记吧，几个月前SBS涨工资，新加坡人、马来人、印度人都有份，唯独中国人不涨。上百号SBS的中国籍司机集体**，文礼转换站陷入瘫痪，SBS立马将中国籍司机工资涨了７５.虽说涨的不多，但是总算是人家自已争取来的吧。换句话说要不是SBS的中国同胞，SMRT的中国人恐怕也不会涨75，可能要更少都说不准。再近一点时间讲新加坡、马来人又涨50，各转换站都贴出来了，大家都看到了吧。中国籍车长又他娘的除外了，我怎么听着新加坡人讲“中国人除外”这几个字—**就疵挠！！！！！？？？？？全身不得劲！！！！

现在的班次大家也应该都看在眼里，超时OD越来越少了，REST是不是这几个月也没得做了，车是越加越多，班也加了，但整体班次时间被这帮人改得太缺得了。很多人现在上的班可能还有些超时，但提醒你不要庆幸过早，现在配工部里已经有近七八十个只有几分钟的超时班在等着你，不排除继续增加的可能（这个想都不用想，那是肯定的）。对我们不利的事情正在发生着，我们感觉到了，但都没有认识到其真正的严重性。五天工作制可以随便改成六天工作制，这下倒好了，很多人认为是好事，接下来把你每天的超时OD都炸干，让你白白多工作一天，到时你就不说是好事了。工作天数可以随便改更不用说工作时间了，做后备STANDBY的人说，没事反正我是做后备的还可以赚到超时（宏贸桥车厂的后备天天喝药水赚个屁，有个班大家是不是都抢着做）；你怎么就知道他接下来会不会改变后备的上班时间呢。事情一直都是在变化的，看到你这么好捏好糊弄，多糊弄多捏几下也无所谓。这一切都是谁造成的，都是SMRT，怎么管理的，用不了这么多人为什么招这么多，把人都糊弄过来，让我们自已起哄。我们的工资水平对他们来说是很低的营业成本，他们情愿多准备些司机，也不能够承受没有司机之痛啊！！最关键的问题是什么？他们已经把中国人特点看死了，不团结、好糊弄、成本低？大家想一下是不是？

后半夜睡不着越想越憋气，坐起来啰嗦了一大堆，敲键盘的声音可能都影响到室友休息了（这就是SMRT提供给我们的住宿条件，怎么和SBS比，唉！）。天亮了，太阳也出来了，不知大家想白没有。不管你做与不做，晚上睡与不睡，早上太阳照常向往常一样正常升起，天塌不下来，兄弟姐妹们路见不平一声吼，该出手时就出手，人活着总得有点血**。
诉求（个人拙见，我想不了那么多那么全，只是个引导作用，就看大家的了）：

１、基本工资。（起码与马来人看齐）
２、分红。（该给的总要给吧）
３、上班时间，包括超时OD、REST。（不能你让我做的时候一句话，我们要的时候也一句话“没有”。应做到合理安排，分配均匀。）
４、工资结算的周期要明确。（每次开资时的超时统计周期是哪天到哪天的。不要给我们留下疑问。打电话咨询，总是打不通，打通了又说不明白。）
５、100服务奖、130安全奖。（凭什么你们说扣就扣了，之前的钱箱钱制度就还可以多劳多得，公平分配，可以保障。你为什么乱改明目，说扣就扣，太随便了吧。说白了这个钱到底是谁的还不一定呢？去掉钱箱钱，公司觉得是不是可以更好的提高车长的服务水平，你们怎样想的都。光想着怎样扣司机的钱了，没想着怎样给车长提高满意度，以便更好的为搭客服务，最起码心情会不一样。只罚不奖，这就是新加坡企业的管理之道啊）
６、住宿条件。（改善住的环境，不想信差的话，我想请公司几位人事部同事或领导来体验一下。早班和夜班的同事们到底怎样能休息好。）

理性并有血性的同胞们要行动起来啊！吁明天26号星期一、27号星期二集体MC，自已的尊严、自已的利益只能靠自已，MC（有薪无薪没有区别）对你自已的利益来说损失什么了，不就是几十块吗？而对我们争取自已的尊严来说那可不是几十块钱可以衡量得的。请相互转告，广而告之，不怕汉奸走狗。对于不知道的星期一早上宏贸桥和兀兰宿舍门口大家再次互想转告，坚决不上工人班车，对于那些无动于衷的人坚决抵制和鄙视，其良心也会受到谴责的。关系到每个人的利益，所有人都应该参加。大家一起加进QQ群：185268576，不要怕汉奸，怕事就不做了，永远成不了事。

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Reading the translated english version just lacks the punch. Nevertheless i'm reproducing it as well as it is a milestone in labor relations that those people at the top ignore or don't understand.

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Where is the pride of mainland china’s bus drivers?

An open letter to all mainland chinese bus drivers in SMRT:

My fellow comrades, since coming to Singapore, long or short, what are your exact inner feelings? Have you felt like your pride & dignity has been trampled over by the management of your company that you are working for?

Even the Malaysian Chinese do feel for us. Yet we can only face it helplessly (This is our choice). Based on what??? Argh. We are all foreign workers, but why is it that Malaysian has a higher status than Mainland Chinese (PuttingSingaporeans aside)? Malaysian monthly salary is $1400+ while Chinese nationals get $1000+. Basic salary difference is a few hundred dollars. Malaysians have bonuses, while Chinese nationals do not get any. Does that mean that the job scope is different? Are our work performances worse than others? Do we not follow the rules & regulations of the company? Malaysians can don't come to work as & when they like (E.g. when it rains). This, I’m sure everyone knows. This results in the lack of drivers, and who comes to fill the gap? Of course we China drivers have to do that.

Usually when we ask HR for OT, what is the situation like? Think about it. For us China drivers, if we stop working for two days without a valid MC, that would be difficult. They will take it as AWOL and can even warn and discipline you. I really don’t understand, what are the reasons for so many Malays not coming to work on rainy days? We are under the same management, but the ways they deal with things are so different. We are coolies & hard labourers to you!!! Where are your conscience??? Do you have any sympathy??? You are also a Chinese like us, fuck, yet your attitude towards us are worse than Caucasians. Don’t you all agree? Also, I am sure that some China nationals working in other Singapore companies are treated better than the Malay & Indian counterparts.

Other bosses feel that Chinese nationals are well behaved and easy to manage. Work diligently, and do not cause trouble. This is enough for them. Speaking about bonuses, SBS China national also have bonuses, regardless if they are Malay or chinese everyone is treated fairly. Why is it that SMRT are looking down on chinese nationals? Fuck. Why???? Why is it so?

We brothers & sisters, we should not be hurt. SMRT management conscious has been taken by dogs. Yet us, we cannot keep tolerating it until we give up completely. I’m sure theres only  one possibility in their hearts, that is the management of SMRT do not know the needs and wants of chinese national drivers. (Or they may know but pretend not to). But they definitely did not see our confidence & determination to achieve what we want. Because we Chinese do not speak up. They can do what we want with us, it doesn’t matter. So when they make decision on us, there is no right or wrong.

Obviously they think there are loads of us, a trip to China can get tons of people as workers. When we are of no use to them, or no longer obedient, they will kick us out. This strategy is very useful. Those few who speak up would be told to leave. I believe this is how you guys think, that’s why we all chose to be quiet? Yet why do we not think in another way, if hundreds of us speak up together, I’m sure it is the management who will get fired. It is not like we do not know the traffic situation in Singapore. If hundreds of us don’t go to work for a few days, it will be headlines in Singapore, all newspapers will publish, comment, and discuss the reasons of the strike. LTA, will have to immediately investigate on SMRT.

We the Chinese citizens , have pride & dignity.  The China of today is different from the one yesterday, even the low profile China government are no longer tolerant of others, and are now more and more firm, not to mention us strong and capable men, we should straighten up and be a man, and having the spirit & pride of a Chinese. If we do not give ourselves dignity, how would others do so? We must fight for out own dignity, and not expect people to take pity on us. We must let those who look down on Chinese change their perceptions. Fuck. Why should the Chinese put up with nonsense, I am not born that way. No big deal, its not like I’ve done anything illegal, everything are reasonable requests. We should have the rights to ask for equality. There is nothing extraordinary and be afraid of. Wake up my fellow brothers and sisters. When we come together, mountains move. Actions will fulfil dreams. Without actions, don’t expect people to pity and help us. We can only rely on ourselves. If we don’t do it, don’t participate, who will do it for you? I really don’t understand, why are we treated so differently? Is it so different?

I’m sure all of you have not forgotten what happened recently. Few months ago, SBS raised the salaries of Singapore, Malaysians and Indians except for China nationals. More than hundred China national drivers cametogether to xx, Boon Lay bus interchange came to a halt. SBS immediately raised China nationals salary by $75. Although its not a lot, still they fought it themselves. In other words, if not for the Chinese nationals working for SBS, Chinese nationals in SMRT may not have any increment.

Even more recently, Singaporeans & Malaysian have a increment of $50, notices have been put up on all bus interchange, and I’m sure everyone has seen it. Chinese nationals have been once again excluded. Whenever I hear Singaporeans say (except Chinese national), I feel xx !!!!!!!! Totally demoralized.
Currently there are less off days and work schedule is terrible. Things are getting worse, we can feel it. Yet we do not know the consequences, 5 days work week can be changed to 6 day work & consequently squeeze dry your rest day, so they make you work one more day for nothing. If they can change the number of working days, they can also change your working hours. Those who are on standby said it is ok, because they are just on standby but still can earn money. Those on standby at Ang Mo Kio, drink medicine everyday, is it worth it? Why are people fighting to be on standby? How do you know if they will change the working hours of the standby? Things are constantly changing, they know you can be bullied, so they will exploit you. Who have caused this, it is all by SMRT, why are they managing so inefficiently? They make us unhappy over it, our pay is nothing to their expenses, they rather reserve more drivers than to lack any. What is most important, they know our traits, not united, easy to cheat, cheap labour. Think about it.

Whole night couldn’t sleep, fuming with anger, keep thinking about it, the typing of keyboard may have even disturbed the sleep of my comrades (This is how they provide for our accommodation, unlike SBS). The sun rises, not sure if everyone has understood. Despite doing or not doing, sleeping or not sleeping, sun will always rise everyday. The sky will not crash, brothers and sisters when we see injustices we should shout in unity. Help each other when needed. We must be hot blooded.

Proposed demands (in my humble opinion, I don’t think so perfectly, only as a guide, it depends on everyone):

1)      Basic salary (at least on par with Malaysians)
2)      Bonus (give what is required)
3)      Overtime include off days and rest
4)      Work pay clearly stated
5)      $100 service award, $130 safety award
6)      Improved living conditions

Rational and righteous comrades should take action! I ask tomorrow 26 Monday, 27 Tuesday to take mass MC. Our own dignity and benefits must be fought, MC is just a little money, yet what we fight for is priceless. Please spread the word, not to be afraid. For those who do not know, tell them on Monday morning at the entrance of Ang Mo Kio and Woodlands dormitory not to go to work. Boycott and despise those who take no action, let them torment in their guilty conscious. This involves everybody. Please join QQ group 185268576. Don’t be afraid of traitors, with fear nothing can be done.


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Safety on roads & staff morale would be improved if those drivers from China get same salary as Msian drivers. They are reasonable in their request. What is unreasonable is the obscene salaries of those poor performing people at the top. A big cut of those top salaries is needed.

Managers are a dime a dozen but leadership is rare. Education has little to do with it.

New Type of Milk Powder Purchased From Telcos

• ~2.55 million S Koreans are addicted to smartphones, using the devices for 8+ hours a day.
• Addicts find it difficult to live without their handsets & their constant use disrupts work & social life.
• New mobile devices that instantly respond to a touch of a finger seem to make children more restless than before & lack empathy.

"I get nervous when the battery falls below 20%"- 11 year old addict

Reading news of South Korea to stem digital addiction from age 3, i reckon S'pore is just as bad from i have observed. Is common to see people 'umbilical cord' to their phones on trains & buses.

I experience the most outrageous sight at a traffic light with 6 others waiting for the light to turn green. 5 are playing with their cellphones & 1 talking with his. It seems as if the pace of life has gotten out of control where people 'must do something' via their phones & no time to watch the traffic, trees, night sky.

I have a basic cellphone with no internet connection because switching to the cheapest data plan is still a heck lot more costly than the discounted plan i'm on after many years. As such the phone lacks the ability for me to connect to the internet. Most of the time for long journeys i'll either read a book on trains or listen to music on buses.

Suck milk not enough. Must "suck" smartphone too. 'New type of milk powder' purchased from telcos.

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I leave my phone at home at times:
- Work-life Balance Suffers Due to Technology

No Sustained Demand in S'pore Due to Depressed Wages

The strike by the chinese bus drivers for same salary as Msian bus drivers is a small crack with regards to income gaps.

Monkey see, monkey do. Seeing USA CEOs pay themselves absurb fat salaries & S'pore's ruling hybrid regime & its govt-linked companies top honchos also follow suit.

Previous 'cleopatra CEO' of SMRT salary is $1.8M & not punished for the pile of mess she left behind with breakdowns, denial, decline of service standards etc. Look at the dismal salaries of bus drivers before 'noises' led to an increase:

Instead of debating whether the chinese bus drivers should get a $200/mth increase & 1mth bonus, the bigger issue is to push for major reduction of excessive salaries for the top management. Reduce excessive pay for the top people (govt ministers, CEOs, top management) & divert it to the average working Joes.

The current hybrid regime is the best example of excessive pay & yet deliver much of the populace into suffering in terms of depressed wages, standards of living, leisure time. Henry Ford understands that paying his workers good wages creates sustained demand. Our govt scholars study so much & yet they either ignore or don't understand this basic concept.

S'pore's 1st Workers Strike in 20+ Years

Parody laugh:

You can take satisfaction in knowing that we will be facing Pro Alien Party in our first merging in some time!

Unity is strength. Unite!

I'm thrilled that 200 bus drivers hired from China went on a strike. I consider their request for same salary treatment as Msian drivers reasonable though they lack english speaking skills & accustom to driving on the left back in China. I've written about the pathetic 3rd world wages(using bus drivers as example) last week in the 11 Years Experience = 1 Year Repeated 11x .We have finally reached the tipping point on this issue.

Both China & S'pore practise State Capitalism but china's version is their citizens well-being come first. S'pore's State Capitalism model made citizens lives hard by flooding in cheaper foreign workers to suppress/replace citizens so the state owned companies have higher profits.

Is been 20+ years since S'pore had a workers strike. Many sinkies are docile & meek & thus the pro alien party made the life of many hard with suppression of wages. Though the china drivers are generally lesser educated they are not dumb. I admire their guts in standing up for their rights.

J. Paul Getty who was one of the richest man in the world during the 1950s-1960s wrote in his book 'How to be Rich:
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I've usually found that organized labor is fundamentally fair-but it wants to know the facts.
They are asking for same salary as Msian drivers which is $200/mth more & 1 month bonus. I consider it fair considering the damn Cycle Fest charges $68 (previously $78) for a short 29km which is darn expensive even for sinkies.

Workers are not ignoramuses. They are perfectly capable of recognizing attempts to mislead or misinform them & like anyone else, they are quite likely to resent & rebel against such treatment. On the other hand, once they are given the unvarnished facts, the workers are generally cooperative to the maximum extent consistent with their legitimate aims & their responsibilities toward their fellow workers.
China drivers know sinkie drivers shun the job since is 3rd world wages. They know they are being exploited like sinkies by the Pro Alien Party.

Perhaps part of the cause of the spate of accidents by china bus drivers are due to resentment as they drive. How many lives are at stake?

Labor's propensity-its high earnings & consequent high buying power-represents an important factor in the prosperity of the nation as a whole.
S'pore looks prosperous on the surface but beneath it many sinkies buying power are eroded. Debt & more debt provides the facade of prosperity.
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Monster Moves Never Seen In S'pore

When people in tiny S'pore say move house they mean packing their furniture & stuff, loading them onto trucks & moving them to their new place (usually a pigeon hole). In other developed nations, moving house is really moving house. The likes of which we won't see in tiny S'pore. Look at those wheels under the building:

Monster Moves is the documenatary series by the same maker of the Big Bigger Biggest series that i enjoyed earlier. Again with superb computer animation illustrating the concepts.

Besides the computer animation illustration i also like:

• Boss of moving company slog it out in the field with his workers.
• Plenty of cheap foreign workers like sg? Ain't such thing over there.
• Cheaper to move whole house over a managable distance than build a new one.

Definitely worth watching them at Chocobullet's Monster Moves youtube channel

Look at the heavy pulling by the heavy vehicles of the house up a slope:

Penang Banning Polystyrene Containers. What Has Pro Alien Party Done?

Malaysian state of Penang bans polystyrene containers as food packaging from Dec 1 after more than 3 years of awareness & educational campaigns. Businesses flouting the ban will have their licences revoked.

S'pore has launched wednesday as No-Plastic bag day. The campaign is a big failure while our northern neighboring country is pushing ahead with more green initiatives. The govt has to come in(intervene) & act as referee to force compliance. Leaving it to free market doesn't work as evidenced in S'pore.

World Bank warned that global temperatures could rise by 4 degrees this century without immediate action, with potentially devastating consequences for coastal cities & the poor.

“The time is very, very short. The world has to tackle the problem of climate change more aggressively”- World Bank President Jim Yong Kim

There is still plenty of oil (unconventional & expensive) left on Earth. Problem is we can't continue burning fossil fuels & emitting more greenhouse gases without triggering the tipping point.

I find it sickening that S'pore's ruling Pro Alien Party is so blinded by greed & $$$$$$$$. Massive importation of foreign beings into this tiny island that now make up 40% of the population so as to boost consumption/usage of plastic in order to boost gdp at all costs like cancer.

Switizerland which was once S'pore's role model as i've written on their Gotthard Base Tunnel doesn't resort to massive importation of 'consumers' to drive, eat, drink & use plastic bags/containers to boost their swiss economy.

And the Youth Olympics Overbudget minister is employing scare tactic of slower gdp growth against sinkies. I see nothing wrong with slower growth. Is their grow gdp at all costs like cancer mentality that will doom S'pore as sea level rise & submerge it.

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Related:
Plastic Bags Banned in Penang, Msia - Got Balls

11 Years Experience = 1 Year Repeated 11x

11 years tank driving experience vs 1 year tank driving experience from highly entertaining russian T-34 vs T-90 - Fearless Russians Dare Use Antique Tank from Museum.

It just shows that 1 year experience is more than enough for majority of cases. Many people like to list 5, 10, 15 years job experience doing certain stuff. Do they expect to be paid 5x, 10x, 15x more? (celebrities being 1 of the exceptions)

I have nothing against those folks who like their jobs doing the same stuff for 5, 10, 15 years. But that's a terrible way to live being stuck in a job they despise.

Speaking of drivers, the public transport drivers in S'pore are paid 3rd world wages (See Bus Drivers Pay Comparison). Hence many locals shun the job. The govt-linked transport companies squeezes the workers so as to pour more dividends into govt coffers. In other developed countries like Australia or Germany, their drivers are decently paid. They are paid 3x,4x more than s'pore public transport drivers. Does that mean the aussie/german drivers are 3x, 4x more productive, drive 3x, 4x better?

Economist Chang Ha Joon wrote that the aussie/german drivers are paid much more because the talented people at the top of their societies provide FAR MORE VALUE than their counterparts in other countries thus lifting the rest of society. What Chang wrote is an eye-opener to me when i think about the 'top talent scholars' in S'pore govt.

Instead of those 'top talent scholars' lamenting sinkies are not hardworking(work-life balance already in the news), lack drive etc, they ought to look at themselves instead & ask themselves why they cannot match their counterparts in Australia/Germany using their talent to pull up the rest of society so drivers can be better paid.

We already know how talented our govt scholars are. Out-of-formula when resorted to building not 1 but 2 casinos in this tiny island. Their talented way of lifting the rest of society is with gambling & massive imports of foreign beings to boost gdp......

Scholars Are Primarily Booksmart

Came across an old message board discussion thread on what Jim Rogers said about sovereign wealth funds in Abu Dhabi & S'pore that made large investments in Citigroup & UBS during the subprime financial crisis:

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"They're making a big mistake; these banks have many more problems still ahead. They should wait until these companies are really on the ropes a few years from now . . . and trading at $5 a share."

But aren't they supposed to be the smart money? Maybe not. "I know these people, and they have never given me the impression that they're smarter than anyone else," Rogers says. "They have gigantic amounts of money, but they've made a bad judgment in these cases."
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Though Jim Rogers didn't mention who those people are, i reckon for S'pore he is referring to the 'scholars'. As you can see from the chart in my previous writeup Mutation of PAP as Seen from S&P500 Index , the scholars are lulled into thinking they are smart during the super bull run from 1980s to 2000.

However the scholars just happen to have their boats lifted in a rising tide.

"Only when the tide goes out do you discover who's been swimming naked"-Warren Buffett

Other than the billions of investment losses, we can also see our govt scholars getting screwed by the chinese streetsmarts in the Suzhou Industrial Park investment.

Singaporeans including myself have since birth been beaten down through the education system. Many are beaten to think they are stupid when they didn't score well in the primary school leaving exam at age 11-12. These beaten down folks need to reclaim their self-worth,esteem as what Jim Rogers said & what we can see from these scholars' dismal performance outside the classroom.

Low Returns from Unconventional Oil = High Prices

Yesterday, i wrote that France has ban fracking to protect environment as America has grown desperate to drill deep using fracking. Wikipedia has list of a dozen countries regarding their stance on fracking. Just how input intensive (thus expensive) & harmful is that oil extraction process pointed out by Richard Heinberg?

2:50min video sums it up:

"19,000,000 litres of water needed throughout each fracking operation's life- enough to supply 1,000 europeans for 1 year"

Hydraulic fracking is underground so is hard to imagine the amount of materials, $$, workers, water & energy invested to get energy. It takes energy to 'get' energy. With 'low hanging fruit' gone/running out, it takes more & more & more inputs to output a unit of energy. Result= high energy prices.

To undertstand why the french govt said no to hydraulic fracking due to public pressure, we can look at the large-scale mining of tar sands for oil in Alberta, Canada though it is above ground.


Titbits from 11:39min Tar Sands Oil Extraction - Dirty Truth video:
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Tar sands production uses enough natural gas to heat 3,000,000 homes & spews out as much greenhouse gas in a day as 1,340,000 cars.

Tar sands extraction in Alberta, Canada:

• there is nowhere else on earth where we are destroying the area the size of Florida/England
• there is nowhere else on earth where you have toxic ponds that are so big that you can see them from space

"We are at a real crossroad on getting the energy economy right. Decisions are being made today that will make that happen or commit us to perpetual decline & more & more filth, more & more disease & less & less choice."

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Look at:
- scarred landscape from 00:59-01:26
- how much greenhouse gases at the processing facility are being spewed into the atmosphere at 5:32min.

Desperate Oil Drilling by USA via Hydraulic Fracking

I was taken aback when International Energy Agency reported that USA to become world's biggest oil producer. They are already desperate drilling for oil in deepwaters as the Deepwater Horizon oil spill disaster in 2010 has shown. That means the 'low hanging fruit' is gone so how can USA be world's biggest oil producer?

Continuing reading further the 'low hanging fruit' is indeed gone. USA is resorting to hydraulic fracking to drill deep. France has ban hydraulic fracking in 2011 due to environmental worries.

Because of high oil price, fracking is economically viable after paying for the high tech stuff & inputs.

What is hydraulic fracking? 6:22min video:

"But, if pursued with vigour, they would also lead to huge increases in greenhouse gas emissions that would put hopes of curbing dangerous climate change beyond reach."

Already the weather is changing in S'pore. USA has been hit by a superstorm just a couple of days back. Worldwide addiction to fossil fuel needs to be curb. Renewable energies make up a pathetic % & this time window of drilling for unconventional expensive oil might be the last window mankind have before even higher prices hit virtually everything.

High oil price --> High costs in making, transporting, storing food & stuff ---> mayhem/collapse of modern civilization

"What's new is high oil prices. It's high oil prices that make unconventional oil worth producing in the first place. It takes lots of oil, $$$ & energy, not to mention water, to frack low-porosity rocks. & the environmental risks are staggering."-Richard Heinberg

2:33min Fracking Lies by Oil Industry video:

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Related:
Algae as Biofuel, Not Crops As We Ain't Enough to Eat

Not Playing According to Rules the Winners Play

I don't expect the current ruling party of S'pore to change their entrenched habits/mindset. Besides political parties, it also applies to companies & individuals clinging on to old successful ways.

To undertand why it is so darn hard to change a success formula, one can look at history being replete with examples of victors sticking to their old success formula only be be outmaneuvered by rivals who simply play by another set of rules.

Since i delved into history particularly WWII i'll use that for examples:

French Sticking with Static Defensive Warfare
Victory with static defensive combat in WWI, made the french to construct the Maginot Line. We all knew what protection it offered the french during WWII. The germans simply bypass much of the line & attacked through the Ardennes forest.

Japanese Navy Obssession with Battleship Big Guns
Pearl Harbor attack was launched with carrier-based aircraft.

"The result shocked the USA & other leaders around the world. Aircraft, an auxilliary weapon had sunk the enormous battleships."

Yet it took a hell of an effort by mastermind of the attack Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto to get the go-ahead. A large part of the japanese military establishment are convinced that battleship big guns are the way to go as that's the way the japanese navy beat the russian navy(a feat) making Japan a naval power.

Assasination attempts were made on Yamamoto's life when he suggested to change the 'big guns' formula. It should be lauded that Yamamoto himself was a naval gunnery officer & for him to switch to naval aviation is a feat itself. I learnt it from 70min video: Pearl Harbor: View from Japan [New window]

Imperial japanese navy obsession with big guns (old success formula) are best known for their construction of Yamato & Musashi which are the heaviest & most powerful battleships during WWII.

If the imperial japanese navy had emphasize more on aircraft carriers instead of being obsessed with super battleships, a different chain of events would occur......

What MASSIVESOFT's Windows 8 Can Teach Pro Alien Party

I'm still on WinXP & the game XCOM-Enemy Unknown which doesn't support WinXP is the first nudge on the back to upgrade. I'll probably upgrade to Win 8 like after 1-1.5years upon upgrading of CPU, motherboard, RAM. I held back from upgrading all these years mainly for support for my 10 year old MP3 player. By skipping Vista & Win 7, i probably saved $200-$300.

I'm no fan of Massivesoft due to its huge size which allows it to act as a monopoly & bully at times. Doesn't it resemble S'pore's ruling party with virtually a monopoly of parliament & a bully making lives hard for much of the populace?

However i have to give kudos to Massivesoft for making significant changes with Win 8 in order to stay relevant in the marketplace. Did the massive Pro Alien Party make significant changes?

Making significant changes is deem risky but if Massivesoft play safe by continuing to just tweaking here & there, it becomes more risky further down the road. In S'pore the massive Pro Alien Party is just tweaking here & there because they are so frickin entrenched in their success formula of the past since the birth of the nation. In fact some netizens say they are 'out-of-formula' since have to resort to opening not 1 but 2 casinos.

The scholars running the country are terrified of making significant changes because they are 'scholars' (old man being alive is another reason). So as scholars(risky adverse from education system) they must look smart by not making significant changes else fail which make them look darn stupid.

Staying relevant in this fast changing world:

• MASSIVESOFT making significant changes ---> safer route in long term
• Pro Alien Party small tweaks here & there ---> risky route in long term

Kudos again to Massivesoft despite their massiveness & past successes are able to make the leap with significant changes for Win 8. Cause if Massivesoft don't, smaller competitors which are nimble might change the rules & landscape.

"World Class Marketing" for Guniness Cycling Convoy Record

Grow gdp at all costs like cancer also sibei shiok (feel fantastic). Can grow can already. After all the cancerous effects, "chemotherapy" is coming up.

2 cycling events coming up to repair/heal the divided nation:

• S'pore Cycle Fest 2013 in Feb
• Ride to Sunrise 2012 in Dec

Would you pay $2.73/km to ride 26.8km? Hell no, for me!
S'pore Cycle Fest's main event is 5000 cyclists ride 26.8km ride for guniness world record for most no. of riders.

$78 to take part in the main ride event. That's absurb to me. The website got the audacity to say:

"Singapore Cycle Fest 2013 hopes to involve the whole nation & bring it together through a common interest & participation of activities".

Considering the 3rd world wages many local workers get, the event has become a rich man's event & they got the cheek to say 'involve whole nation'.

Pay so much just to cycle. Bloody leeches. I rather spend my $$ in Malaysia & boost their economy.

As you can see above, the sponsors come first & you don't even see any relevant info when the page load up. You have to scroll down. Clearly they put sponsors $$$ as higher priority than having relevant info to get more cyclists to join.

Doesn't the Cycle Fest 2013 reflect exactly the same illness plaguing the country? The illness of outside look very good with $$$ but inside is rotting & rotting already.

Even if they are not marketing, they are already marketing. See how 'fantastic" their marketing is!

Govt Grassroots Machine Organise Largest Community Night Cycling to Unite Sinkies
The fee is more acceptable but i wouldn't take part. Bunch of deadwood come up with this stupid registration process:

Look at their pathetic website design. See how 'brilliant' their marketing is.

I pointed out website design errors when working in big corpseration but is not taken heed.  Bosses don't like my assertive tone & i lack degree in Web Usability (if such thing exist in 1st place). They prefer a docile & obedient puppy dog which i'm not. There are plenty of foreigners who are obedient & won't make noise cause they want to earn the mighty S$. Even stupid orders they will carry out.

I don't know if above 2 cycle event websites are done up by locals or foreigners. That's 1 of the danger of hiring foreigners. They keep quiet & don't make noise so as to collect S$ paychecks month after month after month then sayonara SG for a comfortable life back in home country. I doubt they care about the loss in businesses resulting from poor design of website.

Mutation of PAP as Seen from S&P500 Index

Let's see how the hybrid regime of S'pore mutates over time as seen from the S&P 500 index.

Independence & Growth of Young S'pore
When S'pore was ejected from Malaysia, the old guards leaders of the current hybrid regime ain't have a clue how the tiny island is gonna survive- Stop at 2! Stop at 2! Stop at 2! Please don't make any more babies!

Albert Winsemius a Dutch economist from UN was instrumental in helping steer our young nation during its inception years till 1984. I don't recall any mention of this dutch guy in school textbooks. Sinkies are brainwashed into thinking that the current hybrid regime is the savior of S'pore & the old man in particular.

Golden Age till Early 1990s
I regard the early 1990s as the end of the golden age of S'pore. The golden age is a period when the population of S'pore are cohesive & inclusive. People have leisure time with rising standards of living.

Compared to now, life back then for the masses are:

• not as stressful
• not as fast-paced
• not as kiasu
• time for home cooked dinners with family
• not as crowded/congested
• citizens instead of consumers
• enough retirement $$

Mutation: Greed Comes In

A rising tide lift all boats. The hybrid regime are seduced by the rising tide of the world economy & became greedy as during the golden age seeing how 'easy' to roll in the $$. Their mantra became $$$$$$$$$$, market value, market value, market value. Hence the decline of S'pore started somewhere around mid 1990s.

After early 1990s, many shops become half-half shops(what progress is that?) due to ever increasingly killer rent. Hence the phrase 'S'pore mutates into a rent-seeking economy' seeps in.

Birth rates plunge to world's lowest & now the hybrid regime wants consumers (i don't use citizens) to make more baby consumers to keep their easy $$ gravy train from crashing.

Decline, Decline, Decline. Long-term Decline of SG
Wave of post war baby boomers are retiring. Birth-rates lowest in world. New imported consumers ain't gonna reproduce much in a high-cost, overcrowded & stressful tiny island.

As seen from chart history, the stock market is in a sideways pattern for 12 years already- dotcom bust in 2000, housing bust in 2007. We are around the corner now for another recession especially after Obama is reelected(no need prop up economy to gain votes).

Cheap oil, the life blood of the world economy is running out. Consequences of end of cheap oil & the demographic time bomb are just 2 factors that would spell the end for the current hybrid regime.

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Related:
- Appreciate Golden Age of S'pore from Train in 1991
- Singapore Back in Late 80s

T-34 vs T-90 - Fearless Russians Dare Use Antique Tank from Museum

As 2012 has less than 2 months to go, it would be 2 years of no tv watching for me. This greek guy 'BitnikGr's channel on youtube is my fav for russian WWII & military related videos.

His channel offers a glimpse into russian made tv programs. Is a nice break away from western perspective(US & British) especially on WWII. I enjoyed 'Wings of Russia' which he uploaded. Now i'm around 80% through the 'Weapons of Victory' short clips of WWII soviet weaponry.

Switch to 480 quality & full screen view---> Tank Race! T-34 vs T-90!  [New window]

I found it simply amazing the russians drove the granddaddy WWII antique tank T-34 out of the museum. Russian tv is so much better than S'pore's mediacorpse. No kiasuism fearing the antique tank will get damaged/spoilt which it did during the program.

Even if you don't delve into WWII history or military stuff i still recommend watching the entertaining 33min show to see how lousy & lack of creativity S'pore's tv programs are.

Is new necessarily better? You'll be surprised at certain aspects.

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Related Soviet WWII video:
Soviet Storm: Soviet Perspective of WWII

What 54% Drop in S'pore Airlines 2nd Qtr Net Profit Mean for Sinkies

Due to weak demand & high oil prices, S'pore Airlines(SIA) posted a 54% drop in 2nd qtr net profit. It was reported that fuel costs accounts for 41% for the airline & 50% for its cargo planes.

Its CEO Goh Choon Phong said: "Every US dollar increase in fuel cost per barrel will contribute almost S$45 million in terms of cost for the group.

No clear skies ahead for SIA also means no clear skies ahead for the masses. As baby boomers around the world are retiring, there's ain't much $$ to spend(weak demand). Era of cheap oil is over as Deepwater Horizon oil spill diasaster has shown -drilling in deepwaters is desperate.

After a break of 26 years, now the Youth Olympic Games overbudget minister is buildling 10 hawker centers in 5 years. Previous timeframe is 10 years. If don't build the hungry old peasants gonna riot already!

Asset rich cash poor is what describes many sinkies as bulk of their retirment $$ are used for housing mortgage. High oil prices will eventually force these baby boomer retirees to sell/downgrade their homes to buy food.

The incumbent Pro Alien Party cannot win against these greater forces (expensive oil + boomers retiring). Hence the collapse of the property market which is already in bubble territory.

The economy does not like high oil prices as seen in the oil shocks of the 70s. This time we have a wave of retiring baby boomers as 'catalyst'.

Expensive oil + Boomers retiring = Property market collapse(SG) & Severe Recession

Super Hurricane Sandy & End of Current Economic Growth Model

On the previous Wednesday(24th) i wrote about the change in weather which most people are still 'asleep' with regard to its seriousness.

Super Hurriance Sandy which hit eastern US is the largest Atlantic hurricane in diameter on record thus is called 'super'. A few papers even dubbed it 'Frankenstorm'.

We are hitting the limits of our current model of economic growth. There are limits to what Mother Nature can sustain.

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"We are approaching a cliff & no one is driving, No one is putting on the brakes. In fact we have people in charge still trying to step on the accelerator saying we need more economic growth at any costs. Because that's what it takes to keep the economy going & people with jobs & politicians elected. But how do we get more economic growth? By burning more fossil fuels which just make all the problems worse."-Richard Heinberg speech in 2010
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The moment Richard Heinberg says those words in red, i know the best example is S'pore's Pro Alien Party. I have been hammering at the repugnant approach the Pro Alien Party utilizes to grow the economy like cancer. No other nation on this planet import & import & import so many Consumers (again i don't use Citizens) that foreigners make up 40% of the population in this tiny island.

More consumers to eat eat eat, shit shit shit. That's why a few call the S'pore economy an Eat & Shit economy. All these burn up more fossil fuels. As Richard Heinberg said, it just make the problems worse.

Who Killed Economic Growth: 6min 30secs . Watch it 2x.
You can see there's no recovery till now since the dotcom bubble burst in 2000 in the chart in my blogpost: 5 Years On & Still No Recovery in Overall Market



Again in my blogpost yesterday - Gotthard Base Tunnel - Reflects How S'pore Veers Off-course. Switzerland does not resort to massive importation of consumers to eat & shit in order to boost consumption & drive gdp. They don't need more vehicles on the road to suck $$ via parking fees, electronic road pricing, petrol taxes etc.

As the current economic model is unsustainable, the housing bubble in S'pore is similarly unsustainable. It will collapse. Many sinkie's retirement $$ which went into house payments & hoping to sell & downgrade will have devastating losses.

Gotthard Base Tunnel - Reflects How S'pore Veers Off-course

Swiss standard of living was what we were told to look forward to back in the 1990s. Looking at the Gotthard Base Tunnel being bored through in 2010 reflects how far sillypore has veered away. Now sillypore is congested with vehicles while the swiss want to preserve their prestine alpine environment & cut down pollution.

Sillypore's infrastructure is bursting at the seams with flooding of 'consumers' in bid to grow gdp at all costs like cancer while the swiss started on their costly longest tunnel in world(57km) infrastructure 16 years ago.

Purposes according to wikipedia:
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Primary purpose: Shift freight volumes from road to rail to reduce environmental damage caused by ever-increasing numbers of trucks.

Secondary purpose: Cut passenger trains journey time from Zürich to Milan/Lugano.
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1min 14s video:
See final rocks being smashed through at the celebration ceremony. See how farsighted the swiss govt is >15years ago without being paid obscene salaries compared to current sillypore govt ministers ruling a tiny dot with crumbling infrastructure.