Why I Emigrated to Oz!

[makapaaa]

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>What it means to be S'porean
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->SINGAPORE faces the issue of new citizens, immigrants and foreigners pouring onto its shores. At times, I ask myself: 'What does it mean to be a Singaporean these days?'
After national service, I went abroad to study and met many Singaporeans in Australia. We would often talk about our plans for the future, and the two common outcomes were: remain in Australia and become permanent residents, or return
to Singapore to be with family and friends.
From my experience, many Singaporeans are inclined to remain in Australia, citing its lower stress level, work-life balance and lack of belonging in Singa-pore.
In addressing the lack of belonging, many observed that with new immigrants coming into the country, Singapore is no longer the Singapore they knew it to be. Thus there is a lack of rootedness to the country.
Singapore is a young nation, and I am a second-generation Singaporean, by virtue that my grandfather was an immigrant from China. What makes me more Singaporean than a Chinese family that just migrated to Singapore? Is it my family's two generations of Singaporean heritage? Two generations are insignificant compared with immigrants who have arrived in Australia since colonial times.
Like Australia, Singapore opens its doors to immigrants. However, there are two major differences when comparing the two countries.
First, language. Everyone in Australia speaks English. Immigrants all speak the single common language of society.
Language is the common denominator that helps frame the notion of being an Australian. However, not everyone speaks a single common language in Singapore.
Second, land availability. There is a lot of underutilised land in Australia. Thus there is more than sufficient space for new immigrants. But the same cannot be said of Singapore.
This is where government policies come in to protect the public interest and facilitate a system of equality, meritocracy, social cohesion and accountability.
As I celebrate National Day this year abroad with my Singaporean friends, I begin to reflect and conclude that Singapore is growing, maturing and is arguably at an early stage of nation-building. The notion of our country and its citizens as we know it will continue to evolve.
Singaporeans should be open and welcoming to new citizens.
At the same time, the Government should address, and be seen to address, the issues of citizens who may feel oppressed by the competition introduced by new Singaporeans.
Together as a growing society, we can build Singapore for future genera-tions.
Boon Jiahao
Brisbane, Australia

 

[TeeKee]

i tot he prefers the much cooling OZ weather?

and i dun think they censor the TV there...LOL..

 

[singveld]

dun worry boon, those new citizen like chinaman and ah neh will come and join you soon.

<TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR>What it means to be S'porean
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->SINGAPORE faces the issue of new citizens, immigrants and foreigners pouring onto its shores. At times, I ask myself: 'What does it mean to be a Singaporean these days?'
After national service, I went abroad to study and met many Singaporeans in Australia. We would often talk about our plans for the future, and the two common outcomes were: remain in Australia and become permanent residents, or return
to Singapore to be with family and friends.
From my experience, many Singaporeans are inclined to remain in Australia, citing its lower stress level, work-life balance and lack of belonging in Singa-pore.
In addressing the lack of belonging, many observed that with new immigrants coming into the country, Singapore is no longer the Singapore they knew it to be. Thus there is a lack of rootedness to the country.
Singapore is a young nation, and I am a second-generation Singaporean, by virtue that my grandfather was an immigrant from China. What makes me more Singaporean than a Chinese family that just migrated to Singapore? Is it my family's two generations of Singaporean heritage? Two generations are insignificant compared with immigrants who have arrived in Australia since colonial times.
Like Australia, Singapore opens its doors to immigrants. However, there are two major differences when comparing the two countries.
First, language. Everyone in Australia speaks English. Immigrants all speak the single common language of society.
Language is the common denominator that helps frame the notion of being an Australian. However, not everyone speaks a single common language in Singapore.
Second, land availability. There is a lot of underutilised land in Australia. Thus there is more than sufficient space for new immigrants. But the same cannot be said of Singapore.
This is where government policies come in to protect the public interest and facilitate a system of equality, meritocracy, social cohesion and accountability.
As I celebrate National Day this year abroad with my Singaporean friends, I begin to reflect and conclude that Singapore is growing, maturing and is arguably at an early stage of nation-building. The notion of our country and its citizens as we know it will continue to evolve.
Singaporeans should be open and welcoming to new citizens.
At the same time, the Government should address, and be seen to address, the issues of citizens who may feel oppressed by the competition introduced by new Singaporeans.
Together as a growing society, we can build Singapore for future genera-tions.
Boon Jiahao
Brisbane, Australia

 

[littlefish]

Singapore is a young nation, and I am a second-generation Singaporean, by virtue that my grandfather was an immigrant from China.

Just to digress a little, he should be considered as 3rd generation if his grandfather was the one that initiated the move. Unless his father was already an adult (over 18, I think) when he arrived in Singapore, his father will be considered as 2nd generation.

 

[TeeKee]

dun worry boon, those new citizen like chinaman and ah neh will come and join you soon.

no worries mate! they have plenty of spaces to spare...

 

[TeeKee]

Just to digress a little, he should be considered as 3rd generation if his grandfather was the one that initiated the move. Unless his father was already an adult (over 18, I think) when he arrived in Singapore, his father will be considered as 2nd generation.

no..2nd generation is correct...

his grandpa is not Singaporean...

but his father is born in Singapore...making him first generation Sinkie.

 

[limpeh2]

dun worry boon, those new citizen like chinaman and ah neh will come and join you soon.

Sorry hor - the keling scum infestation is already underway.

This image was taken directly in front of the famous Flinders Street Station in Melbourne. As you can see, the keling scum had blocked off the normally busy roads while waging biological & chemical warfare with their pong. What a fucking frightening sight.

The Arsetralians're in more shit than they know. The stinking keling horde's gonna completely fuck up their country's social infrastructure in no time.

 

[Aussie Prick]

Small Problem with Australia: Its not nearly as good as the USA

Questions:

1) if australia's high taxes are supposed to cover health care, why does the ATO levy an additional 1% levy if you dont have private cover when earn more than 50K?

2) if you have free health care, why do you need private hospital cover?

3) why do these private health coverages cost so much?

4) why are waiting times to get health care so long in australia?

5) why are cars 3X the price of the US?

6) why is petrol so much cheaper in the US? why is australia petrol so much higher?

7) why is food so much higher in australia than the US?

8) how come the US has so many cheap houses and prices are falling when the opposite is true of australia?

9) how come the US allows you to deduct mortgage interest on your primary home on your taxes and australia does not?

10) how come labor/services is 300% higher in australia than th US?

11) how come 2.5 million people applied to become citizens in the US last year when Australia only saw a small increase?

12) how come there is a 10% GST in australia when the GST in the US is much lower, and several states have no tax at all!!

13) how come wages in australia are not as high as the US?

14) how come 30-40% of your income is required to pay a housing loan in australia?

15) how come it takes A$ 104K annual income to pay for a 431K home in australia?

16) how come variable interest rates on property have exceeded 10% in australia when the US is less than half?

17) how come the planning councils in america are efficient and release land for development at a timely pace when the opposite is true in australia

18) how come there is a "good" housing crisis in america and a "bad" housing crisis in australia?

19) how come airfares from australia are so high? why is it australians pay as much to fly 8 hours as americans pay to fly 18 hours?

20) why are clothes costs so high in australia? why is it the americans sell themselves timberland shoes for $30 and charge australians $200 for the same product?

 

[TeeKee]

Small Problem with Australia: Its not nearly as good as the USA

Questions:

1) if australia's high taxes are supposed to cover health care, why does the ATO levy an additional 1% levy if you dont have private cover when earn more than 50K?

1% is alot? is this important?

2) if you have free health care, why do you need private hospital cover?

maybe you want higher quality service? like airplane got 1st class, business class and economy class? i mean if you live in such country with fresh air everyday you wake up, how often do you need to see a doctor?

3) why do these private health coverages cost so much?

do you fall sick easily in wide spaces and fresh air?

4) why are waiting times to get health care so long in australia?

see above

5) why are cars 3X the price of the US?

actually this one is very subjective, depends on the car/make/model/enginee cc of the car you plan to buy. for the price of a new OZ made ford falcon 4.0 litre, could you only get a toyota 1.6 corolla in US. how to compare like that?

6) why is petrol so much cheaper in the US? why is australia petrol so much higher?

din really compare this when i was there, but both countries petrol are definitely cheaper than SGP?

7) why is food so much higher in australia than the US?

i dunno depends on what you eat. sometimes they have promotions, you could have a hungry jack whopper for 2 AUD. But if you eat chicken rice in Brisbane, it'll cost you AUD 7-8. I had mee goreng in the California, which costs about USD 7. But they have ching chong takeaway for less than 5 bucks. supermarket food are definitely cheaper!!

8) how come the US has so many cheap houses and prices are falling when the opposite is true of australia?

are you kidding that houses in major cities cheap? houses in OZ is much cheaper. but because of the subprime crsis, everything is going crazy...LOL..

but houses in both are comfortable, on top you don't have stacks of neighbours like HDB flats. quiet some more, not to mention no pollution from petrochemical complexes, you can always have parking space.

9) how come the US allows you to deduct mortgage interest on your primary home on your taxes and australia does not?

i dunno. is this important? are there other deductions like your spendings?

10) how come labor/services is 300% higher in australia than th US?

wah dun anyhow whack lah, where you get this stats?

11) how come 2.5 million people applied to become citizens in the US last year when Australia only saw a small increase?

US is not a immigration country...it's trying to discourage immigration whenever possible. more than 300 millions now. comparable sized OZ still got plenty of spaces to welcome SGPlians!! OZ is an immigration country. much easier to get into OZ or Canada than US.

12) how come there is a 10% GST in australia when the GST in the US is much lower, and several states have no tax at all!!

bloody hell i paid 8.25% sales tax in cali, if you go outside for food there's service charge of 10%...i think...LOL..

13) how come wages in australia are not as high as the US?

the more you earn, the more you spend....

14) how come 30-40% of your income is required to pay a housing loan in australia?

american houses are not cheap either....especially in places where most people wanna lived in. nice sunny weather, no bad snow.

15) how come it takes A$ 104K annual income to pay for a 431K home in australia?

you can get pretty nice landed properties in OZ with almost half of that price. can you get that in SGP?

16) how come variable interest rates on property have exceeded 10% in australia when the US is less than half?

why do you have to talk about money in almost every of your questions?

17) how come the planning councils in america are efficient and release land for development at a timely pace when the opposite is true in australia

again properties and monies...you are migrating for the wrong reasons!! D

18) how come there is a "good" housing crisis in america and a "bad" housing crisis in australia?

again properties and monies...shallow!!! D

19) how come airfares from australia are so high? why is it australians pay as much to fly 8 hours as americans pay to fly 18 hours?

lack of competitions from cheapo airlines? of course in a country with 300 millions fly more often than a country of 20 millions?

20) why are clothes costs so high in australia? why is it the americans sell themselves timberland shoes for $30 and charge australians $200 for the same product?

on sales? went to wrong shops? not much retailers owned by PRCs, they'll know how to bargain from their timberland suppliers back in PRC?

wah you are not enjoying the benefits of migration, only talk about property and monies?!?!?!

you should go out and enjoy God's creation like this more often!

 

[TeeKee]

or this!

 

[TeeKee]

when you are in OZ, pop over to NZ to enjoy this wonderful God created view...

 

[littlefish]

no..2nd generation is correct...

his grandpa is not Singaporean...

but his father is born in Singapore...making him first generation Sinkie.

No, you are wrong. First generation PRs do not need to serve NS. That means that they came to Singapore as adults. Their kids, whether or not they are born here are considered as second generation and liable for NS. So unless his father came over as an adult with his grandfather, his father is considered as 2nd generation.

The only exception is if the grandfather is not a PR, then not considered Singaporean. Maybe long ago, there was no such thing as PR as Singapore did not exist as an independent state then?

 

[TeeKee]

i dunno why, but the flowers there are much prettier...over there in God's country...

 

[TeeKee]

No, you are wrong. First generation PRs do not need to serve NS. That means that they came to Singapore as adults. Their kids, whether or not they are born here are considered as second generation and liable for NS. So unless his father came over as an adult with his grandfather, his father is considered as 2nd generation.

so are we talking about PRs or Singaporeans?

 

[littlefish]

so are we talking about PRs or Singaporeans?

For immigration purposes, whether or not they convert to citizenship later or just hold PR, the adults that initiate the move (that is, those applying for residency) are considered as first generation and their dependent children (doesn't matter where they are born) as second generation if they apply for PR for their children as well.

If you want to restrict the category only to those born here, then what do you call the immigrants who later convert to pink ICs? 0G? The problem is that our numbering system only starts from 1. There is no ground floor at our HDB flats.

 

[londoncabby]

Its alot when you have to pay 40% taxes.

If you want first class health service go to USA, not Australia with broken run down hospital and 1 year waiting time for Hip replacement. People die waiting for surgery there and on top charge you 1% mandatory.

Health Care in Australia = major ripp-off and problem.

there is fresh air in malaysia, canada, and the whole world.what a foolish sentiment.

actually this one is very subjective, depends on the car/make/model/enginee cc of the car you plan to buy. for the price of a new OZ made ford falcon 4.0 litre, could you only get a toyota 1.6 corolla in US. how to compare like that?

Not so. Look at the current car prices for a mercedes C class or S class for example. A Mercedes C Class in Australia is 80-90K. Convert that to US$ and see the same car in USA is 30K and you can purchase 2.5-3 cars for one. A Mercedes S Class in Australia when you factor in the exchange rate is not far off Singapore prices!



din really compare this when i was there, but both countries petrol are definitely cheaper than SGP?

No. Australia takes its prices from Platts Oilgram Singapore, and taxes each liter of Petrol over .44 per litre. There are also very high taxes on Income, alcohol, cigarettes, etc. Your effective tax rate in Australia might be 50-70% when all aggregate taxes are computed.


If you want to compare apples to apples, so be it. A supermarket selling milk in Australia is 200-300% more than USA milk. McDonalds selling a McChicken Sandwich in the USA is $1 USD. A Cheeseburger is .79. A Quarter pounder with cheese meal on a recent trip to Orlando, Florida was $4 USD. Many supermarket staples in the USA are a fraction of what it costs anywhere else, as is non-staple luxury items such as Haagen-Dazs Ice Cream where one pint selling in a Singapore supermarket for S$ is 15 when it was USD$ 2 (Buy 2 = USD$ 4) Compare stapes to Australia and I have to be shocked at how expensive food in Australia is, dining in, eating out, or at the supermarket

<<<<<are you kidding that houses in major cities cheap? houses in OZ is much cheaper. but because of the subprime crsis, everything is going crazy...LOL..>>>>>>

Australia has some of the most expensive housing in the world. Only in Australia does the bank require you to earn A$ 104,000 to purchase the median A$ 431,000 property. Looking at Perth, where prices are as you put it "falling" a 431,000 is a tiny property. A$ 104,000 income is very high salary for Australia with high tax rate. Also look at the stamp duties. No stamp duties in the USA. It takes 6-7X your income to purchase the median home compared to the 2-3X your income to purchase the median home in the USA.

pollution? Kindly explain the black skies, over Sydney. Also factor in the 1-2 hour traffic jams in Perth, Sydney, Melbourne and other cities. Also parking. Australia now has some of the most expensive parking in the world. Melbourne Airport made the news for having the most expensive parking in the world last year.



wah dun anyhow whack lah, where you get this stats?

If you wish to see the stats go to the old forum, its all there.

US is not a immigration country...it's trying to discourage immigration whenever possible. more than 300 millions now. comparable sized OZ still got plenty of spaces to welcome SGPlians!! OZ is an immigration country. much easier to get into OZ or Canada than US.

I did not know the US is not an immigration country. 2.5 Million applications cant be wrong. Australia and Canada make entry easy as they need people to work, generate and income and increase the tax base, but the USA is trying to keep people out. Yet untold millions still try to reach the USA for a reason as its the best in the world.

bloody hell i paid 8.25% sales tax in cali, if you go outside for food there's service charge of 10%...i think...LOL..

Wrong. 8.25 is only LA county, not the rest of California Also State of Deleware is 0 tax and Colorado is 2.9%. Why all of Australia is 10% when California is cheaper? Every other state in USA is much below 10% and average is 5-6%. Also why cant you deduct your sales tax on your federal tax returns in Australia like you can in USA?

the more you earn, the more you spend....

In Australia govt take more than they would in the USA. That is why Australians leaving and rich Australians prefer to live in USA. See Croc Dundee, Greg Norman, AC/DC etc many examples on internet why Australians avoid their own country.

american houses are not cheap either....especially in places where most people wanna lived in. nice sunny weather, no bad snow.

Go to Florida. Very Sunny. Everyone want to live there. Can get beachside mansion for US$ 500K, still no takers. No bank finance but Singaporean with money can buy 500K house that is 5 Million in Australia. No comparison.


you can get pretty nice landed properties in OZ with almost half of that price. can you get that in SGP?

Compare a terrace house to that of middle class suburb in Perth. Take exchange rate difference and compare. Yes almost same as Singapore. Then go compare to USA. In California where everyone want to live can buy mansion. In Florida can buy 2. In other states go see how many mansion can buy. Also cars. Buy 1 car Singapore can buy 1.5 in Australia, or buy 3 or 4 for same price in USA.

lack of competitions from cheapo airlines? of course in a country with 300 millions fly more often than a country of 20 millions?

competition? lack of competition explains why prices are 300% higher than USA? There is no competition in Australia?

????????

wah you are not enjoying the benefits of migration, only talk about property and monies?!?!?!

Ok lets talk about fresh air. Its cheaper in America. Lets talk about freedom. There is more freedom in USA. USA ban red light camera. Lets talk about racsim. If you are an Asian, you will be beaten or spat on in Australia.

USA is not white man country, Australia is. Asian in USA much more successful than Asian in Australia.

you should go out and enjoy God's creation like this more often!

Also think USA more beautiful than Australia. Too much desert in Australia. Soon water there will become like gold, no water there making it very expensive unlike USA.

 

[Aussie Prick]

How anyone can be happy living Australia is beyond me

Australia is the worst country in the world

 

[Char_Azn]

For immigration purposes, whether or not they convert to citizenship later or just hold PR, the adults that initiate the move (that is, those applying for residency) are considered as first generation and their dependent children (doesn't matter where they are born) as second generation if they apply for PR for their children as well.

If you want to restrict the category only to those born here, then what do you call the immigrants who later convert to pink ICs? 0G? The problem is that our numbering system only starts from 1. There is no ground floor at our HDB flats.

I think its how all the other countries counts, not just in SG. I think its only in this forum where the usual 1st gen is not considered as 1st gen because they didn't do NS, which is kind of unique to SG.

 

[annexa]

Singaporeans are not sacred of competition. We just want compete on equal footing. The gahmen cannot ask us to do NS, but let the foreigners have option of buying house in India and China to run back when their lower than our wages, is no longer low enough.

Sack HDB scholars first. Give us the REAL subsidy, not the fucking MARKET SUBSIDY which is a DISCOUNT.

 

[SamuelStalin]

Singaporeans are not sacred of competition. We just want compete on equal footing. The gahmen cannot ask us to do NS, but let the foreigners have option of buying house in India and China to run back when their lower than our wages, is no longer low enough.

Sack HDB scholars first. Give us the REAL subsidy, not the fucking MARKET SUBSIDY which is a DISCOUNT.

Just fuck yourself and die, stupid. You ugly, stupid and worthless dog.