ST Editorial: SG xenophobic. We need FT!

[makapaaa]

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Coffeeshop Chit Chat - ST Editorial: SG xenophobic. We need FT!</TD><TD id=msgunetc noWrap align=right>

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</NOBR> </TD><TD class=msgDate width="30%" noWrap align=right>4:28 am </TD></TR><TR class=msghead><TD class=msgT height=20 width="1%" noWrap align=right>To: </TD><TD class=msgTname width="68%" noWrap>ALL <NOBR></NOBR></TD><TD class=msgNum noWrap align=right> (1 of 13) </TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgleft rowSpan=4 width="1%"> </TD><TD class=wintiny noWrap align=right>17055.1 </TD></TR><TR><TD height=8></TD></TR><TR><TD class=msgtxt><TABLE border=0 cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 width="100%"><TBODY><TR><TD>Geylang, Chinese and the irrationality of fear
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<!-- START OF : div id="storytext"--><!-- more than 4 paragraphs -->NOT every Singaporean, it is clear from letters to The Straits Times Forum Page recently, welcomes the increased usage of Mandarin in Singapore, in particular in enclaves such as Geylang. Amy Loh underscored the collective mood among many Singaporeans when she wrote that all new shop signs in Geylang were presented in Chinese - and Chinese only. Her question: Is this something to be encouraged in Singapore, a country which has four official languages? This 'disturbing trend', she added, could push Singapore along the route of Western countries, where there is growing resentment towards enclaves taken over by foreign residents.
Ms Loh's comments - and those of other letter writers - reflect a feeling among many Singaporeans that seldom speaks its name: a fear of foreigners, known otherwise as xenophobia. This is not surprising, given the huge influx that had taken place over the last few years as a result of the economic boom, before the financial tsunami brought it down to earth. There is a palpable fear among Singaporeans that foreigners will take their jobs, school places and, in some cases, even their spouses.
But xenophobia is defined more extensively as an irrational fear of strangers that is largely unwarranted. One only has to look at the world's most economically vibrant cities - London, Sydney and New York - to see the benefits accruing from recruiting foreigners. Singapore, more so than these far more richly-endowed cities, needs a steady influx of foreign talent to keep its edge as a dynamic global city with a high-performing economy. This is the only way to create better jobs for Singaporeans now and in the future. It's how the world's foremost cities have grown, and Singapore is no exception.
This is not to say that Geylang should remain monolingual, even though it remains so due to purely commercial reasons. Geylang represents a global reality writ small: the rise of China necessitating the increased use of Mandarin even as the globalised world makes the use of English more widespread. That said, Chinese nationals in Geylang and elsewhere in Singapore have an incentive - if they want to integrate more fully in Singapore society - to acquire basic English fluency. In time, this will come about naturally because English is the working language here. They will find, as did earlier Chinese immigrants before them, that there is advantage in doing so in Singapore's multi-racial environment. Singaporeans need greater patience to let this come about in the fullness of time.


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[makapaaa]

>>>NOT every Singaporean, it is clear from letters to The Straits Times Forum Page recently, welcomes the increased usage of Mandarin in Singapore, in particular in enclaves such as Geylang. <<<

Since when the Papaya support "enclaves"? If it's OK now to pander to FTrash's needs, why not do away with pigeonhole racial quota? Or policies can be "fine tuned" under 1 cuntry, many systems?

 

[Ah Guan]

Once again the state propaganda compares cities like Sydney, London, NY to a sinkapore, a sovereign country

 

[jim007jimmyboy]

if there is GOD

Pls shove all the FTrash into pinky ass, old man ass and Ho Jinx lau cheebye!

Thank you GOD

GB

 

[shelltox]

We are simply not fucking and producing enough and with a 3rd of the population close to retirement age our economy is going to implode.
Ask yourself, who are propping up the resale HDB flat, the crowded shopping centres .
Without the FT buying your resale HDB flat, your HDB/ your condo is another negative assets. Your investments in reits would achieve nil returns.
And lastly, your money in your CPF without the FT is support by a inverted pyramid.
Your old uncles knows only to spend a $ drinking coffee at your geylang kopitiam and wasting money on the PRC .

 

[cooleo]

Now we still got a BUS LANE, will till those f**king ah tiongs flood our peesai with their bicycles, hong gan liao!

 

[johnny333]

Without the FT buying your resale HDB flat, your HDB/ your condo is another negative assets. Your investments in reits would achieve nil returns.
And lastly, your money in your CPF without the FT is support by a inverted pyramid.

The uncontrolled importation of foreigners is placing a strain on our infrastructure. Our roads & public transport is packed. What about the $$$ being spent to expand water filtration, & limited landspace that has to be diverted to support all these people

Since when has the HDB become an investments You're better off buying gold which isn't limited to a lease of 99 years.

When the foreigners(excluding West Malaysians) decide to go home then what. Are you saying that our CPF is some kind of Ponzi scheme

If all my CPF had been used to buy gold, I'd be better off than it being siphoned off to Temasek. There are so many better investments oppurtunities out there than CPF. Would you trust someone who has "no regrets" about loosing other peoples $$$ ?

 

[littlefish]

Once again the state propaganda compares cities like Sydney, London, NY to a sinkapore, a sovereign country

You are absolutely right. Singapore the city, is unfortunately, also Singapore the country. Any other country that has a 33% foreign population would have seen countless revolts by the local population by now. This is where the tagline "Uniquely Singapore" fits so well. There is no need for NS at all. The invasion happened many years ago and many are still indifferent about it now. They might as well have opened up their homes and invited the foreigners to live with them for free. Maybe this would be the next scheme promoted to integrate foreigners, remember, you read it here first.

 

[Nice-Gook]

Now we still got a BUS LANE, will till those f**king ah tiongs flood our peesai with their bicycles, hong gan liao!

<style></style>Too late.Try walking in any pedestrian path in Jurong.You either get run over by Ah Tiongs in their rusty bicycles without a bell or stared for no giving way to their bicycle power.

 

[SamuelStalin]

You are absolutely right. Singapore the city, is unfortunately, also Singapore the country. Any other country that has a 33% foreign population would have seen countless revolts by the local population by now. This is where the tagline "Uniquely Singapore" fits so well. There is no need for NS at all. The invasion happened many years ago and many are still indifferent about it now. They might as well have opened up their homes and invited the foreigners to live with them for free. Maybe this would be the next scheme promoted to integrate foreigners, remember, you read it here first.

Singapore is a small country on its own in the Malay Archipelago. Even Hong Kong, a province of China, has the same issues. There are Indians, Filipinos, and LOTS MORE Chinese nationals (think of the geographical distance compared to here) in the territory as well.

What would you suggest for Singapore instead?

 

[cooleo]

<style></style>Too late.Try walking in any pedestrian path in Jurong.You either get run over by Ah Tiongs in their rusty bicycles without a bell or stared for no giving way to their bicycle power.

Sinkapore in the future! Believe it!

 

[littlefish]

Singapore is a small country on its own in the Malay Archipelago. Even Hong Kong, a province of China, has the same issues. There are Indians, Filipinos, and LOTS MORE Chinese nationals (think of the geographical distance compared to here) in the territory as well.

What would you suggest for Singapore instead?

Firstly, HK is different from Singapore. It is not a sovereign country but a former British colony. As such, there is no ingrained notion of nationhood. When it was announced that HK would be returned to China, many Hkers fled overseas and now hold a second passport. For HK, there may be many foreigners (though not in the proportion as in Singapore) but they maintained the usage of their common language (Cantonese) throughout. Foreigners had to adapt to that.

Why should I suggest anything at all? The issue is while people are dulan with too many FTs, they are not totally opposed to the idea of having foreign immigrants. It is up to the government to come up with the proper policies to cope with the problems brought on by the massive influx sanctioned by them. For too long, they have only focused on the economic aspects while ignoring the social implications. I am just amazed that they haven't been punished at all for this oversight.

 

[SamuelStalin]

Firstly, HK is different from Singapore. It is not a sovereign country but a former British colony. As such, there is no ingrained notion of nationhood. When it was announced that HK would be returned to China, many Hkers fled overseas and now hold a second passport. For HK, there may be many foreigners (though not in the proportion as in Singapore) but they maintained the usage of their common language (Cantonese) throughout. Foreigners had to adapt to that.

Why should I suggest anything at all? The issue is while people are dulan with too many FTs, they are not totally opposed to the idea of having foreign immigrants. It is up to the government to come up with the proper policies to cope with the problems brought on by the massive influx sanctioned by them. For too long, they have only focused on the economic aspects while ignoring the social implications. I am just amazed that they haven't been punished at all for this oversight.

And also, you have to understand that Singapore was ruled by the British much earlier than Hong Kong, that they seized much later by Opium War. But the British left Singapore MUCH EARLIER than Hong Kong.

Unlike British rule especially considering the different lengths of time things were done differently - the approach between the Pappies and the British notwithstanding.

One example would be the British finally conceded that the Chinese in Hong Kong are hopeless in the English language and kept failing tests and examinations in it, so they dropped English as the first language and let the Cantonese speak their Chinese instead and remain employed and stuff. After all after '97 China will take over and provide them with employment and all - up to themselves. Singapore does not have this luxury of returning to British or Malayan rule, and so the Pappies on the other hand, governing, as you already said yourself, a small and independent country with an uncertain (if not also ever-precarious) future, had to impose English as a first language regardless so as to make it attractive for investors and companies from Europe and America (that were dominant economic powers of those times) to set up manufacturing plants here and employ the locals who could also communicate with them with little hindrance.

As said earlier the future of your Singapore unlike Hong Kong is ever uncertain and often precarious, and so government policies would have to adapt to and change with the times. No policy can really stay iron and stay the same forever especially in a small independent country. Who would have known that manufacturing labor would be so easily displaced eventually by developing countries in terms of lower wages and where companies would actually prefer cheaper workers over a reliable, handworking and honest one with less communication problems?

So with what has happened (you can't expect the government to curse foreigners and blog against them for their profit-oriented decisions), things have to change. And furthermore, the birth rate in recent years is dropping severely (including brain drain issues) just like in other developed countries like Japan, so the government has to keep at finding ways to cope with that, some of which you obviously do not agree with. Which is where more immigrants are allowed to come in, in part to making up for the missing numbers. Which is why you were asked for alternatives as you seemed very strongly against this development.

You suggestion in the second paragraph is pretty reasonable. Yes, they seemed to have overlooked the social implications and would probably take a long time to deal with this, but eventually measures would be implemented.

 

[limpeh2]

[Please delete, accidental repost]

 

[limpeh2]

The only 2 things the SG powers-that-be haven't yet expected and/or insisted that Singas do are giving FT f-ck privileges with their children & spouses and providing mandatory free lodging for these FT.

Unregulated open-door policies'll kill the viability & prosperity of any nation. When the SG Gov gleefully clogs up the nation with hordes after hordes of THIRD WORLD FTs before the previous ones have had a chance to assimilate & upgrade themselves, you cannot expect SG not to end up with a truly THIRD WORLD status. After all, we've been importing impoverishment & other country's social dysfunction without having the time to address those issues. Through exaggerated numbers then, those FTrash will see no need to assimilate & will foist their bad habits upon the native populace.

Our situation is not similar to the West unlike what silly SG leaders thought they were emulating in FT immigration. That's because the West attracts educated, wealthy kelings & ah tiongs who bring their expertise & money there. On the other hand, as we've all seen time and again, the rabid THIRD WORLD bumpkins & other fringe elements, choose SG due to ease of immigration & the unjustifiably silly, beholden attitude the racial diaspora (e.g. SG kelings & chinese) have for the mainlanders.

Furthermore, with the SG Gov being so out-of-touch & not being the sharpest tools in the shed where government is concerned, these short-sighted policies will herald social & economic disaster for SG in the not-so distant future.

 

[Echo_O]

Nah beh, that day nearly ram down an ah tiong who cycled and ignored the pedestrian light

 

[littlefish]

As said earlier the future of your Singapore unlike Hong Kong is ever uncertain and often precarious, and so government policies would have to adapt to and change with the times. No policy can really stay iron and stay the same forever especially in a small independent country. Who would have known that manufacturing labor would be so easily displaced eventually by developing countries in terms of lower wages and where companies would actually prefer cheaper workers over a reliable, handworking and honest one with less communication problems?

So with what has happened (you can't expect the government to curse foreigners and blog against them for their profit-oriented decisions), things have to change. And furthermore, the birth rate in recent years is dropping severely (including brain drain issues) just like in other developed countries like Japan, so the government has to keep at finding ways to cope with that, some of which you obviously do not agree with. Which is where more immigrants are allowed to come in, in part to making up for the missing numbers. Which is why you were asked for alternatives as you seemed very strongly against this development.

You suggestion in the second paragraph is pretty reasonable. Yes, they seemed to have overlooked the social implications and would probably take a long time to deal with this, but eventually measures would be implemented.

I have never said that the government should be able to solve the problem of Singapore's future, in fact, I don't believe they have any idea how to. The problem is that they are bragging that they are the ones working miracles and deserving the high pay.

When they came up with the solution of importing foreigners, they never thought deeper about other issues that will crop up. This has been their modus operandi all these years. The absolute hold on power is an obstacle to a healthy discussion and analysis of issues. Even when the people tried to feedback to them, their actions are to deny the reality, defend their rationale and suppress the criticism.

I have never blamed them for being unable to come up with solutions (of course, incompetence is a different matter, like losing a terrorist or a few billion dollars or creating more problems because of their half-baked policies). But when they "prevented" others from doing so or trying to do so independently of them, they crossed the line.

 

[Nice-Gook]

Our situation is not similar to the West unlike what silly SG leaders thought they were emulating in FT immigration. That's because the West attracts educated, wealthy kelings & ah tiongs who bring their expertise & money there.

<style></style>Some corrections here.Oh yes PAP did try to emulate the West by only granting PR status to wealthy and educated foreigners initially.An old uncle once told me a foreigner need to deposit a $million or so to be even granted a business visa to stay in Sinkie.Even the male foreign spouses(usually highly educated Caucasians) married to female sinkies were denied PR(s).That was before.

Why than now the PAP had opened the floodgate to any Ah Tiongs ,Ah Nehs and penoy prostitutes to walk right into sinkie suka suka?.I figure it has to do with LKY failure to attract Honkies when HK was handed over to China.PAP figured Honkies would rush to flood sinkie taking up PR(s) & citizenships.Instead they skip sinkie over- their preference for the west.The reasons are pretty obvious.Sinkie's climate-- both the weather and sinkies stifling politics was unbearable.It cripples their free enterprising spirit..

So the flood of uneducated and uncouth Ah Tiongs,Ah Nehs and Penoys is pretty much what PAP wants.It increases the numbers and it therefore increases the consumptions.Monopolistic state controlled enterprises in sinkie controls almost all consumptions here.Health care,MRT,PUB,HDB,NTUC,Starhub and etc etc etc.

Sinkies emigration policy is not about quality but QUANTITY.

 

[Royalblood]

na beh cheebye. Now i fucking know why so many Singaporeans suffer from pinkerton syndrom and hate everything Singapore. Of course, one of the cause of this is that fucking cheebye 2years of time wasting and useless NS for citizens only while fucking cheebye PRs can run away scot-free.

The major reason is our fucking propaganda machine like to belittle its own citizens saying that they are xenophoes, rude, uncouth, singlish speaking blah blah blah.....To tell u guys the truth, as an impressionable youth back then, i totally absorb their propaganda. It was only when i left Singapore for overseas studies then i found out how docile and accomodating Singaporeans actually are. Here where i am at, the fucking dunkard red necks will not hesitate to throw beer bottles or hurl racial abuses just because you are coloured and i am actually there to boost their redneck economy not drawing capital.... Simply wtf. Speaking of rude and inconsiderate people, i have seen some of the most inconsiderate acts here which i have never seen before in Singapore my whole life. So why the fuck is this proganda machine making us hate each other!? I cannot fathom.....

Thanks to that wrinkled skin gay'ol fuddy duddy LeeKuntYew who likes to use Europe as a benchmark, aka the swiss standard of living; how we should adopt the decorum of the west...like wtf!?, our impressionable SPGs are spreading their legs for every white cocks that come chat up with them and our youth are thinking that everything western must be damn good!

Fuck! PAP has literally destroyed Singapore with their propaganda! Nice job LEE! I HOPE YOU CAN THROW AWAY WHATEVER LITTLE CONSCIENCE U HAVE LEFT IN YOU AND REST IN PEACE WHEN U EXPIRE!? CHAO CHEEBYE!:oIo:

 

[johnny333]

.I figure it has to do with LKY failure to attract Honkies when HK was handed over to China.PAP figured Honkies would rush to flood sinkie taking up PR(s) & citizenships.Instead they skip sinkie over- their preference for the west.The reasons are pretty obvious.Sinkie's climate-- both the weather and sinkies stifling politics was unbearable.It cripples their free enterprising spirit

Some of these Hongkies did end up in Spore. Had them working at my work place, an american MNC, but they have slowly disappeared to end up in Australis or back to HK.

Yes, a hongkie who actually decided to go back rather than stay in Spore.

From my conversations with my colleagues who are real FT(Aussie, PRC, ROC, filipinos, Indians...) none plan to stay on in Spore