places where you have travelled to and their influence on you politically

[freedalas]

No the govt does not make populist policies and I didn't say they do. What I said was that when they enforce an unpopular policy, they know the best way to make sure sinkies tow to the line is to either put monetary disincentives or incentives in place to make sure they get the desired result.

You need to go back to school for a few lessons in comprehension.

Twisting your words again, Mr Leongsam. Not surprising actually, that's what your PAP masters do all the time and as it proved my point that had shaped your behavior so much so u are doing what they are doing instinctively

 

[freedalas]

Bangkok is not a first world city.

And neither is S'pore. A country does not become a first world country just because it's leader say so. Only in S'pore do u get people in the likes of Leongsam to believe it's true just because their masters say it so.

 

[Char_Azn]

And neither is S'pore. A country does not become a first world country just because it's leader say so. Only in S'pore do u get people in the likes of Leongsam to believe it's true just because their masters say it so.

Definition of First world is a bit ambiguous. Here's the Wiki entry

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_World

After the Cold War these countries of the First World included member states of NATO, US aligned states, neutral countries who were developed and industrialized, and the former British Colonies which were considered developed. It can be defined succinctly as Europe, plus the richer countries of the former British Empire (USA, Canada, Australia, Singapore, New Zealand) and Japan.

The countries with very high human development ratings are said[by whom?] to be the most developed and industrialized countries in the world. If the classification of the First World is based on the definition above, the Human Development Index is a good indicator in identifying First World countries. Hence, according to the Human Development Index, forty-seven countries are ranked as having very high human development. Most of the countries on this list coincide with the data on countries listed in Nations Online. The countries that are listed as possessing a "very high human development" on the Human Development Index but not on the NATO list above include:

Andorra, Argentina, Bahrain, Barbados, Brunei, Chile, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Estonia, Hong Kong, Hungary, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Qatar, Singapore, Slovakia, Slovenia and United Arab Emirates.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_World

 

[sirus]

Singapore is a first world country from far and also far from a first world country. he..he..

 

[rusty]

There is always a balance to be struck between freedom and order. In my view, the PAP has got it just about right.

What instrument do you use to measure that balance and who calibrates it?

 

[Leongsam]

What instrument do you use to measure that balance and who calibrates it?

Life experiences. To each his own.

 

[eatshitndie]

What instrument do you use to measure that balance and who calibrates it?

basic. for me, it's a plate of char kway teow and the ambience and peace that i'm enjoying it with. if i can have a plate in more places in absolute comfort, reasonable cleanliness, and at affordable prices, the whole experience translates to orderliness yet underscores freedom and diversity. orderliness, in that the char kway teow experience is almost cookie cutter like. i know i know. no two char kway teows are alike, but within the context of convenience and availability, they are all over at a stone's throw away. and there are occasional health checks, unlike vendors in the past and other countries where mobility is necessary to run away from regular health checks. freedom, as proven by the numerous char kway teow start-ups, ease of funding, freedom of expression by virtue of variances, styles, differences, innovation, creativity, two cockles versus a dozen versus mai hum, one egg versus two, so on and on. and the pork sausage and the lard are stir fried a couple of stalls away from a halal joint. now that's diversity and freedom. ckt was sgd2 decades ago, and it's only sgd3 or sgd4 per plate depending on location and size of plate at today's prices. affordable, numerous, and still delicious. truly a competitive market driven landscape.