the city state...

[zhihau]

couldn't help it but kept thinking about the conversation me had with Uncle Teo a couple of days ago, several questions kept bugging me, and me would need to call upon the collective wisdom of our learned brothers here in the land of SBF to help me solve these questions :o:o:o

1. land mass and population size
our land mass is roughly 700 sqm, currently having over 7K folks per sqm. me find that it is way too crowded for me likings. in your opinion, what is a comfortable range for our population density?

2. food and water
looking at the number of reservoirs we have, coupled the output from the NEWater plants, how long can it sustain our need for clean and fresh water? are our water treaties with our neighbors still in force? when will the treaties lapse? how to keep food at affordable prices?

3. transportation and infrastructure
based on our comfortable range for our population density figures, are our transportation systems designed to withstand such load and capacity? would we need to build taller buildings or have deeper basements? would there be enough public housing?

4. defense and international relationships
why are we spending so much on military hardware when unconventional warfare methods can easily damage our economy more effectively than an all-out conventional warfare scenario? how do we go about establishing ourselves as a sovereign and friendly nation?

5. education and economy
why is the attrition rate in the teaching fraternity high? is CPF really capable of sustaining our Citizens in their retirement age? what will be our pillars of economy in the long run? are we chasing more band wagons in the future?

6. healthcare and quality of living
based on our comfortable range for our population density, is our healthcare system capable of handling the increasing load? even our ever falling birth-rates and the ever falling floor area in public/private housing seems to correlate...

7. immigration and foreign talents
how do we attract real talents and keeping them rooted here instead of having them using Singapore as a stepping stone and/or just a cash-cow?

me think me starting to grow a strand of white hair already :*::*::*:

 

[Leongsam]

Singapore was a pleasant place when the population was 1.25 million.

 

[erection2015]

food and water security could be an issue.

 

[CheongSam]

Bro zhihau...all the questions that you table,i guess you already know the answer.

 

[zhihau]

Singapore was a pleasant place when the population was 1.25 million.

thank you for the honest opinion, boss

 

[Suzie]

Agreed . Best was when it was a fishing village . and all the coconut trees

 

[zhihau]

food and water security could be an issue.

bro,
we can only pray for the current type of rainy weather but that would result in floods, even our reservoirs discharge excess water from time to time. tricky, aye? food prices will continue to escalate as long as the hawkers' overhead continue to rise. me want cheap cheap good good food :(:(:(

i guess you already know the answer.

bro,
thanks for the compliment, but me really seeking opinions and answers because me don't know much of the intricate balance of money and sense :o:o:o

 

[erection2015]

bro zhihau..its not just about price...its about availability. When Russia had their drought they suspended wheat exports.

They correctly put their own food interests first.

What happens if climatic changes cause drought in one food producing area and floods in others...for a protracted period.

These countries would stop exporting and importing countries like singapore would suffer.

Granted the govt has got stocks stashed away but how much?

So indeed i think we could enter a scenario where 'tighten your belts ' could be more than just a figure of speech.

bro,
we can only pray for the current type of rainy weather but that would result in floods, even our reservoirs discharge excess water from time to time. tricky, aye? food prices will continue to escalate as long as the hawkers' overhead continue to rise. me want cheap cheap good good food :(:(:(





bro,
thanks for the compliment, but me really seeking opinions and answers because me don't know much of the intricate balance of money and sense :o:o:o

 

[jw5]

1. land mass and population size
3. transportation and infrastructure

Bro, the government's policy is to get as many people into the island as possible, to maximise usage of the infrastructure. Their purpose? To increase gdp, so that the country will rake in more $.

They are for the most part not concerned with over-crowding because they and their families are not the ones taking the packed public transport system, squeezing in the over-crowded malls or over-crowded places.
They always look after their own first, and if that means over-crowding and unpleasantness, too bad for the peasants.

Which other country in the world has the death penalty as punishment for kidnapping or for firing a gun during a robbery? I can understand a harsh penalty for the act or the death penalty if someone dies as a result of kidnapping or as a result of a gunshot during a robbery. But death penalty for the act only?

The answer is simple: "It could happen to them." Things that do not and will probably never involve themselves and their family members, they are not too concerned.

 

[zhihau]

They correctly put their own food interests first.

民以食为天 me don't blame the other countries when they withhold their stocks and grains when there's natural disasters. can only appeal for aid should such global catastrophe occurs :o:o:o
we had been very lucky to be able to have enough food on our table at every meal but looking at the amount of food thrown away, me cringe. back to the question on how long can we sustain the current state of affairs. also just wondering if our city planners took your points into consideration

 

[laksaboy]

Bro, the government's policy is to get as many people into the island as possible, to maximise usage of the infrastructure. Their purpose? To increase gdp, so that the country will rake in more $.

They are for the most part not concerned with over-crowding because they and their families are not the ones taking the packed public transport system, squeezing in the over-crowded malls or over-crowded places.
They always look after their own first, and if that means over-crowding and unpleasantness, too bad for the peasants.
...
...
...

The answer is simple: "It could happen to them." Things that do not and will probably never involve themselves and their family members, they are not too concerned.

In other words, when Pinky Loong bemoans the 'Not In My Backyard' syndrome, he had best take a close, hard look at himself and walk the big talk.

Otherwise it's sheer hypocrisy.

 

[zhihau]

Their purpose? To increase gdp, so that the country will rake in more $.

bro,
money could buy us the food and water we need in good times, but no amount of money is of use when food and fresh water becomes scarce. is our NEWater plant capable of keeping us alive by producing enough portable water for us?

 

[johnny333]

I'm concerned about the health issues caused by overcrowding. I'm getting to know of more cases of people dying of lung cancer This might be caused by the increasing number of cars in Spore.

There is also the potential of SARS II. Spore is vulnerable because of the overcrowding with people who have never even had a proper health screening.
I still remember the impact of SARS when life in Spore almost stopped.

 

[zhihau]

I'm concerned about the health issues caused by overcrowding.

me see a new strand of white hair, bro
you're not wrong to worry about a similar outbreak, especially so with our sky rocketing population density

 

[tonychat]

Singapore was a pleasant place when the population was 1.25 million.

It is best for the world when its population is 0

 

[erection2015]

that figure is still way above your reported IQ.

It is best for the world when its population is 0

 

[looneytan]

that figure is still way above your reported IQ.

my predicament really, come into bro zhihau's thread I have to be respectful of him

no matter how I want to intercourse that t-chat I have to hold my penis

 

[jw5]

In other words, when Pinky Loong bemoans the 'Not In My Backyard' syndrome, he had best take a close, hard look at himself and walk the big talk.

Otherwise it's sheer hypocrisy.

He would actually be telling the truth because the problems will never be in his backyard.
That may of course change if he and his family are required to have dinner with an FT family every weekend.
Of our choice of course.

 

[jw5]

bro,
money could buy us the food and water we need in good times, but no amount of money is of use when food and fresh water becomes scarce. is our NEWater plant capable of keeping us alive by producing enough portable water for us?

bro, not so worried about this for 2 reasons:

1. If it becomes a problem, it would likely be a world wide problem.
2. Even if it is localised, they would do their best to solve it because they won't want to be seen to be buying imported water for themselves.
Don't forget they are very conscious of their worldwide image.
To be fair, they are trying to solve the water problem, and if Zorro can drink newater, so can we.

 

[Fook Seng]

couldn't help it but kept thinking about the conversation me had with Uncle Teo a couple of days ago, several questions kept bugging me, and me would need to call upon the collective wisdom of our learned brothers here in the land of SBF to help me solve these questions :o:o:o

1. land mass and population size
our land mass is roughly 700 sqm, currently having over 7K folks per sqm. me find that it is way too crowded for me likings. in your opinion, what is a comfortable range for our population density?

Please re-check your figures. Something drastically wrong. Prof Lim CY called for a Second Economic Restructuring to address the income inequality issue. I believe it is time to do one on the overall structure on our economic development, addressing questions like optimal size of population, services vs manufacturing, domestic vs global, optimal level of income, growth etc etc. We have been blindly following an old model and doing just minor tinklings. Need a lot of guts though to do an overhaul - a second Winsemius.