The politics thread :)

[po2wq]

... SGD1=RM1 more than 20 years ago ...

dat, actuarry, was mor dan 30 yrs ago ... in about 82, it oredi was sgd$0.90 = mry$1 ... dat time, sbs announced publicly dunwan 2 accept msian coins ... den, ppl hurriedly tried 2 get rid of their msian coins ... u pay in note, dey return 2 u ur change in msian coins ...

... But why are Msian university graduates unable to speak proper English or Bahasa; ...

can say same ting about sinkielan u grads oso ...

 

[LeMans2011]

Re: Living in JB 3 (Johore)

Engineers are at the bottom of the food chain.
Fund management (financial management, investment consultant) are higher in food chain.

Lets take Hard disk for example. Hard disk capacity is getting bigger and bigger year after year and more and more complicated. But price is getting cheaper. So in engineering, it is always about cheaper, better, faster.
On the other hand, take any financial product that a financial adviser tries to sell you. The return is getting lesser and lesser, risk is getting higher and higher. But their bonus is getting more and more.

Singapore doesn't believe in using engineering to create value anymore. Innovation in engineering is not wanted in Singapore. What Singapore wants is financial innovation. Financial innovation like creating derivatives that no one understand. haha.

Singapore just want to import engineers from China, IT specialist from Indian to fill up the lower food chain so that they can keep the older blue collar workers employed. It is a noble cause by PAP.

If there is anything we learnt from the collapse or near collapse of giants like Lehman Bros, JP Morgan, UBS... it is that financial derivatives are con jobs invented by the dark side. 10 years ago people drooled at the jobs in these banks as the creme' de la creme. Today one would think twice about joining these once prestigious banks as you are at the risk of downsizing anytime. Many of these banking jobs are dismantling. The real jobs that improve human life will prevail.

 

[vincentck]

Bro Vincent, im sure we all vested will wait for e day when $1 = RM1 again haha

Actually I don't wish for that to happen because of my current situation where I benefit from the strong SGD. Having said that, it doesn't mean that I want the MY gov to continue bleeding the country.

If the MYR strengthens because of good governance and a strong economy, blah, blah, blah; then so be it. It would be nice to see it happen during my lifetime.

 

[vincentck]

dat, actuarry, was mor dan 30 yrs ago ... in about 82, it oredi was sgd$0.90 = mry$1 ... dat time, sbs announced publicly dunwan 2 accept msian coins ... den, ppl hurriedly tried 2 get rid of their msian coins ... u pay in note, dey return 2 u ur change in msian coins ...

can say same ting about sinkielan u grads oso ...

Thanks for ur view. I wasn't too sure so i put 20 yrs. When I worked in Sg after my STPM; it was SGD1=RM1.70.

Not too sure about sinkielan grads. But I believe they can speak enough Eng to get a job, while MY uni grads can't. At the most is they can understand Eng.

 

[Newbie2012]

.......

Not too sure about sinkielan grads. But I believe they can speak enough Eng to get a job, while MY uni grads can't. At the most is they can understand Eng.

So most of the Malaysian SPRs are overseas graduates? I heard those older than 50s and from KL can speak good English. What about those young graduates from the prestigious University of Malaya?

 

[vincentck]

Not necessary, IMO, those who studied overseas are usually able to find good jobs in KL. So they won't have a need to go to Sg to make a better living. I was referring more to the Malays who studied in Uni, but can't speak proper English. But it would be an over generalisation because in 1 public uni, a convocation for that uni could mean anything between 20 k-40k graduates and imagine if there are more than 10 universities like that. So, the general perception is that most of these uni grads can't speak proper Eng. UM was prestigious in my time, not now.

Those older than 50 yo are from the older era where English was widely spoken and all races were able to speak decent English as a leftover from the British colonization of Malaya and Singapore.

Disclaimer: These are my opinions and perception which has been formed over the years by my experiences and are not factual.

 

[po2wq]

Not necessary, IMO, those who studied overseas are usually able to find good jobs in KL. So they won't have a need to go to Sg to make a better living. I was referring more to the Malays who studied in Uni, but can't speak proper English. But it would be an over generalisation because in 1 public uni, a convocation for that uni could mean anything between 20 k-40k graduates and imagine if there are more than 10 universities like that. So, the general perception is that most of these uni grads can't speak proper Eng. UM was prestigious in my time, not now.

Those older than 50 yo are from the older era where English was widely spoken and all races were able to speak decent English as a leftover from the British colonization of Malaya and Singapore ...

wat 4 malays cum 2 sg 2 wok? ... dey get betta treatmen in msia ... last time, msia degrees were not recognised in sinkielan ...

msia grads r now paid quite highly, compared 2 last time ... dey r not so tempted 2 cum 2 sinkielan 2 wok ...

u may b surprised wif ze level of engrish of studens in skools ... 4 chinese studens, a lot of parens send dem 4 engrish tution, esp dose in pj area ...

4 dose ove 50, wen dey were skooling, ze medium of instruction was engrish ... dey were tot in engrish n thus can wield a powderful command of engrish ... dose below 50 studied evryting in bahasa ... their engrish was oni conversational ...

 

[Newbie2012]

.......

4 dose ove 50, wen dey were skooling, ze medium of instruction was engrish ... dey were tot in engrish n thus can wield a powderful command of engrish ... dose below 50 studied evryting in bahasa ... their engrish was oni conversational ...

I heard it is during Dr M. era, that they decided to change the English textbooks to Malay language as many Malays are not doing well in schools because of the English textbooks. Looks like Dr M. is the catalyst cause of Ringit depreciating from SGD 0.9:2.5 Rm.

I feel that Malaysia is in a very difficult position to attract good foreign business investments on the whole because of its majority of citizens has neither mastery of English nor Chinese to do business with the westerners or Chinese.

 

[ginfreely]

Unlike PAP who only know how to tell SG citizens to be big hearted to foreigners, lesser pay HK and China govt are showing the way a govt should behave. They put off a scheme to allow millions more PRC visitors to HK and HK new leader saying "Many people, including myself, are paying heed to Hong Kong's capacity and ability to absorb".

**
Crowded Hong Kong frets over flood of Chinese visitors
By James Pomfret | Reuters – Fri, Aug 31, 2012

HONG KONG (Reuters) - China has put off a scheme to allow millions more of its citizens to visit Hong Kong amid growing concern that the city's infrastructure is unable to cope with fresh waves of tourists, Hong Kong's leader said on Friday.
The southern Chinese boomtown of Shenzhen announced last week that it would allow an extra 4.1 million of its residents to obtain multiple-entry permits for Hong Kong, a former British colony that reverted to Chinese rule in 1997.
But just a day before the scheme was to take effect, Hong Kong's new leader, Leung Chun-ying, announced it would be put on hold for three weeks after concern was raised with Beijing that the influx could strain the city's clogged border checkpoints, tourism spots and teeming streets.
Last year, there were 28.1 million mainland Chinese tourists to Hong Kong, almost four times the city's population, up from 8.4 million in 2003. In the first half of this year, 15 million mainlanders arrived, a 23 percent jump over the previous year.
"Many people, including myself, are paying heed to Hong Kong's capacity and ability to absorb," said Leung, as he announced that Shenzhen authorities would not issue any new visitor permits for three weeks.
"We will engage the central government and other authorities on the mainland for us to mutually discuss the capacity of Hong Kong to receive these additional visitors."
Leung skirted questions about whether he would push Beijing's leaders to restrict the numbers of mainland visitors allowed into Hong Kong.
For decades Hong Kong was a racy capitalist outpost on communist China's coast. Even though Chinese cities are now growing fast, cosmopolitan Hong Kong is a favourite destination for people from the mainland.
The freeing up of Hong Kong's border to mainland visitors since 2003 has been a major boon to the tourism, retail and catering sectors. But resentment has been building.
Hong Kong people complain that the influx has driven up property prices and other costs, posing a problem for Leung whose popularity ratings have plunged over a housing scandal and various contentious policies.
Pregnant mainland women have crowded into Hong Kong's maternity wards, eager for their children to be get the right to live in the city.
Even tourism officials now say the volume of Chinese visitors may be reaching unsustainable levels. Social groups, immigration officers and politicians campaigning for city elections have called for a rethink of Hong Kong's integration with China.
Ngai Sik-shui of the Hong Kong Immigration Officers Association said an extra 400 staff would be needed if the plan to allow more visitors went ahead.
"At every checkpoint, we have experienced stress and pressure," Ngai said. "This pressure is building every day."

 

[ginfreely]

Singaporeans are not gracious and big hearted towards foreigners? Have PAP forgotten the outpour of kindness and help by Singaporeans to foreigners in the so many cases that have happened in the recent years?

Cases of the murdered little girl Huang Na, the Thai teenag girl who fell down the MRT track, the PRC hostess found dead in the Sentosa cove bungalow pool, the foreign workers who were robbed by Sarawak workers etc etc. How much donations did they receive from Singaporeans?

What is gracious and big hearted? Should Singaporeans give up our rights to plum jobs, schools and houses etc and get crumbs without a protest to be considered gracious and big hearted?

**
Singaporeans' undercover kindness
Posted on Aug 30, 2012 12:03 PM Updated: Sep 1, 2012 12:53 PM

By Jalelah Abu Baker
[email protected]
More Sharing Services Share on print Share on email Share on twitter Share on facebook


Passers-by helping Teo Jia En (in white, on the ground) up to her feet when the student actress fell to the ground. Ngee Ann Polytechnic students explore whether Singaporeans are gracious by acting out five scenarios. The students were taking part in "Be Nice", an event sponsored by the Singapore Kindness Movement's Seed Kindness Fund. -- TNP PHOTO: YAP NING
Much attention has been paid this past week to the uglier side of Singaporean behaviour.
At his National Day Rally speech on Sunday, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong called on Singaporeans to be more gracious and big-hearted in their treatment of foreigners.

Yet, while we should reflect on and recognise such bad behaviour, it is also important that we do not lose sight of the fact that there is still so much that is good and gracious about our society.

All too often, it is the bad that gets circulated, printed, posted and retweeted. The good tends to keep a lower profile. About two weeks ago, I received a reminder of just how big-hearted Singaporeans can be, even towards foreigners.

I had written a story about a Bangladeshi man who was beaten up and robbed, rather mercilessly, if I might add. He had no money on him. Mr Sudip Chandro Bhandro Joy, 36, was cycling, on his way to meet his brother at Bugis, when two young men attacked him. He was left with serious injuries.

He was in a sad state. He was on medical leave and was not getting paid, so he could not make the monthly repayments for a loan he had taken with his home as collateral. Even feeding his two-year-old child back home became a problem. In the interview, he broke down.

All he wanted to do was go home, he said, to be hale and hearty so that he could work. But he did not have the funds he needed to seek hospital treatment.

From the day the story was published until a day ago, I was inundated with offers of help to him. To date, more than 100 offers have streamed into my mailbox.

Among them was a dentist who offered him free consultation to fix his teeth, which he said were numb, preventing him from eating properly.
Another good samaritan wrote: “It is so unfortunate that this person who came here to make ends meet for his family but he fell victim to one of our own citizens in a totally unprovoked sadistic attack. It's also a blot on our country and we should make some reparation for it as a society.”

There was nothing anti-foreigner in my inbox. If anything, it was the opposite. As one of the donors wrote to me said, it was precisely because Mr Sudip was a foreigner, because he had no support network here, that he wanted to help.

None of the people who came forward had anything to gain from offering their help. They would get no recognition, no medal. These are the Singaporeans we can be proud of. It is not the first time Singaporeans have rallied to help foreigners who have found themselves in unfortunate circumstances.

A substantial sum was raised for the two Chinese workers who died in the Bugis worksite collapse last month.
Thai teenager Nitcharee, who fell on MRT train tracks, and had to have both her legs amputated also had many Singaporeans lending a hand.

For sure, some of us may complain about the newcomers. Some of us resort to flaming them online or leer and scrunch our noses at them in the trains.
But in our efforts to build a more gracious society, I look to my inbox as a comforting reminder that we are not starting from zero.

 

[vincentck]

wat 4 malays cum 2 sg 2 wok? ... dey get betta treatmen in msia ... last time, msia degrees were not recognised in sinkielan ...

msia grads r now paid quite highly, compared 2 last time ... dey r not so tempted 2 cum 2 sinkielan 2 wok ...

u may b surprised wif ze level of engrish of studens in skools ... 4 chinese studens, a lot of parens send dem 4 engrish tution, esp dose in pj area ...

4 dose ove 50, wen dey were skooling, ze medium of instruction was engrish ... dey were tot in engrish n thus can wield a powderful command of engrish ... dose below 50 studied evryting in bahasa ... their engrish was oni conversational ...

The Malays are not the ones coming to Sg to work; like you said the policies favor them. In my hometown, Ipoh, there is a top Chinese school where this school always has the highest number of top students for STPM or the equivalent of A Levels. Their command of Eng and Chinese is very good.

In My, those who studied in Chinese school; I find their Chinese is better than a lot of my Sg friends. But their English is not as good and the opposite the same. LKY was smart enough to realize that a good command of Eng and Mandarin was required to make Singaporeans global citizens.

 

[po2wq]

I heard it is during Dr M. era, that they decided to change the English textbooks to Malay language as many Malays are not doing well in schools because of the English textbooks. Looks like Dr M. is the catalyst cause of Ringit depreciating from SGD 0.9:2.5 Rm.

I feel that Malaysia is in a very difficult position to attract good foreign business investments on the whole because of its majority of citizens has neither mastery of English nor Chinese to do business with the westerners or Chinese.

in msia, last time, all subjects were in engrish ... it was oni in around late 60s, early 70's dat all changed 2 bahasa ... mahathir may b involved, but back den, he was oni a small fry in politics ... abdul razak (late papa of najib) was pm den ...

during asian financial crisis, mahathir pegged xchange rate @ ~ sgd1:2.23myr n stayed around 2.1-2.3 4 a loong time ... it was oni around 2008 dat myr slipped against sgd from there (u can google 4 ze charts) ... 2008 was badawi's time oredi ...

u try attending sum agm's of msian plc's n listen 2 how their ceo's speak ... a lot of msians do haf their studies abroad, whether dey cum back anot is another matter (c my next reply to another post) ...

 

[Newbie2012]

in msia, last time, all subjects were in engrish ... it was oni in around late 60s, early 70's dat all changed 2 bahasa ... mahathir may b involved, but back den, he was oni a small fry in politics ... abdul razak (late papa of najib) was pm den ...

......
.

oic, so it was more like they changed the tax-books to Malay after the British has left.

 

[po2wq]

The Malays are not the ones coming to Sg to work; like you said the policies favor them. In my hometown, Ipoh, there is a top Chinese school where this school always has the highest number of top students for STPM or the equivalent of A Levels. Their command of Eng and Chinese is very good.

In My, those who studied in Chinese school; I find their Chinese is better than a lot of my Sg friends. But their English is not as good and the opposite the same. LKY was smart enough to realize that a good command of Eng and Mandarin was required to make Singaporeans global citizens.

u from dat skool? ... me tot ze studens there r betta @ bahasa dan engrish ...

in msia, there r primary skools whose media of instructions r chinese or tamil ... dey oso learn evry subject in chinese/tamil ... so, studens from dese skools haf very strong foundations in chinese/tamil ... there r oso private secondary skools called chinese independent skools dat teach evryting in chinese ... studens from dese skools r thus very powderful in chinese ... studens from dese skools oso quite like 2 go 2 taiwan 4 further studies on chinese ...

actuarry, a lot of rich parens in msia send their kids overseas 2 study ... u may recall dat sum of ur skoolmates had gone missing while u were studying ... eg. wen u were in form 1, u mite find sum of ur previous fellow primary studens had suddenly disappeared ... similarly, wen u were taking ur spm, u mite find dat sum of ur fellow studens din bother 2 take exams ... same tings in form 6 ...

a lot of rich msians (including malay aristocrats) send their kids 2 britain 2 study after dey haf their primary education ... politicians, tycoons, rich bizmen, doctors, (last time oso tin miners in ipoh), etc all do tis ... den there r dose who send their kids overseas b4/after their spm (usu 2 britain oso) ... dose who leave after 1 yr in form 6 go 2 oz or nz (edu is chippa in oz n nz compared 2 britain) ... ofcos, after stpm, a lot go overseas ... najib, hishammudin, etc all studied overseas sins dey were small kids ...

chinese parens who r not rich enuff 2 send their kids overseas oso got send their kids 2 engrish private tution 1 ...

msia gahmen oso provide a lot of skolarships 2 malay studens 2 study overseas ... similarly, wen dey return, dey usu hold high positions in gahmen, stats bord or glcs ...

sum chinese overseas grads return 2 msia 2 wok ... sum stayed on in their cuntry of further education ... sum ended up in sinkielan ...

msia malay politicians like 2 play wif their malay supremacy card ... dey had juz reverted back 2 teaching secondary sciens n maths subjects from engrish 2 malay ... kwazy! ...

 

[Newbie2012]

Singaporeans are not gracious and big hearted towards foreigners? Have PAP forgotten the outpour of kindness and help by Singaporeans to foreigners in the so many cases that have happened in the recent years?

..........
.

Singaporean has been gracious and kind in the past to the point of being fleeced happily.

Busloads of beggars from Thailand came in the guise of monks and nuns begging for money at our hawkers centers. Conman and tricksters from all over the world including caucasians came in the guise of being deaf and dumb and try to sell you keychains or perfume soaps in our foodcourts at highly inflated charity prices.

It is when Singaporeans job are taken away that they started to wake up. The ones that haven't wake up are the SMEs business owners who are still benefitting from the influx of cheap workers and their food and necessities spendings here.

 

[MsTrii]

Haiz...... So its time for a change of gov. in M'sia.

 

[butadesu]

Haiz...... So its time for a change of gov. in M'sia.

The coming MY GE will be a very much awaited election. Change is in the air. So is the next SG GE.

 

[vincentck]

u from dat skool? ... me tot ze studens there r betta @ bahasa dan engrish ...

in msia, there r primary skools whose media of instructions r chinese or tamil ... dey oso learn evry subject in chinese/tamil ... so, studens from dese skools haf very strong foundations in chinese/tamil ... there r oso private secondary skools called chinese independent skools dat teach evryting in chinese ... studens from dese skools r thus very powderful in chinese ... studens from dese skools oso quite like 2 go 2 taiwan 4 further studies on chinese ...

actuarry, a lot of rich parens in msia send their kids overseas 2 study ... u may recall dat sum of ur skoolmates had gone missing while u were studying ... eg. wen u were in form 1, u mite find sum of ur previous fellow primary studens had suddenly disappeared ... similarly, wen u were taking ur spm, u mite find dat sum of ur fellow studens din bother 2 take exams ... same tings in form 6 ...

a lot of rich msians (including malay aristocrats) send their kids 2 britain 2 study after dey haf their primary education ... politicians, tycoons, rich bizmen, doctors, (last time oso tin miners in ipoh), etc all do tis ... den there r dose who send their kids overseas b4/after their spm (usu 2 britain oso) ... dose who leave after 1 yr in form 6 go 2 oz or nz (edu is chippa in oz n nz compared 2 britain) ... ofcos, after stpm, a lot go overseas ... najib, hishammudin, etc all studied overseas sins dey were small kids ...

chinese parens who r not rich enuff 2 send their kids overseas oso got send their kids 2 engrish private tution 1 ...

msia gahmen oso provide a lot of skolarships 2 malay studens 2 study overseas ... similarly, wen dey return, dey usu hold high positions in gahmen, stats bord or glcs ...

sum chinese overseas grads return 2 msia 2 wok ... sum stayed on in their cuntry of further education ... sum ended up in sinkielan ...

msia malay politicians like 2 play wif their malay supremacy card ... dey had juz reverted back 2 teaching secondary sciens n maths subjects from engrish 2 malay ... kwazy! ...

Nope, not from that school. That school is Sam Tet; the students there are fluent in both English & Mandarin, and probably Bahasa too...

And you're right about what you wrote above. You seemed to be very knowledgeable about the edu system in Msia. Were you or are you a Msian?

And yes, the Malay politicians and rich Malays send their kids overseas to study to prepare them to take over the family business... the other Malays are left on their own to survive. In Msia, it' common to see Chinese businessmen contribute back to society, specially those related to their race to help them up. It's the only thing that they can do since the policies do not favor the Chinese. After we get older, we realise that we have to struggle more, which in a way has made us stronger and more competitive.

 

[po2wq]

Nope, not from that school ...

so, u r cj ah keong's alumni? ... or from dat skool which is celebrating 100 yr anniversary tis yr? or their arch rivals? ...

a lot of msians send their kids 2 sinkielan 4 engrish education ... usu, sec 1 onwards ... iz nax door n climate, fud, etc same ...

me happened 2 gif tution 2 kids from 1 family from ipoh 4 a goot no of yrs ... father got rubber estate ... auntie tot in chinese skool ... so me got 2 noe ipoh quite a bit ... dey gave up on msian education system ...

 

[vincentck]

I'm from SMI; also a good school in Ipoh. Heheh.... I think only Johoreans would send their kids to study in Sg since its nearby.

No wonder u know so much about MY edu system. I haven't given up because I am a product of such an edu system, and I grad from a local uni as well. I realize parents play a very important role in the kids upbringing too; and also academic education is not everything, although its still important.