SBG: Cafe vs Food Court

I usually go to the Botanic Gardens very early in the morning. Yesterday we went later because we wanted to visit the National Orchid Garden. We had free passes riding on the daughter's student pass.

We needed breakfast after our visit and decided to go to the food court, passing by the cafe we used to go to. The place was abuzz with people and you can't find a seat (no problem)

There are a lot more people visiting the Gardens at this time of the day on a Saturday than a decade ago I thought. They have money to spend too. The place have become poor value for money and so we avoid patronizing.

We had a simple breakfast ($5.30) at the food court adjoining next to the former Raffles Hall. There were not many people, many stalls weren't open but the place was quite dirty as some left their trays and dishes behind after they had finished. This isn't like the regular food court, patrons are supposed to bring their trays to the return point. Well it wasn't difficult finding a clean spot either. Yes, we returned our tray and kept the place very clean.

Chia Yong Yong: From "lean left till nothing left" to "CPF is our money"

NMP Chia Yong Yong might have given us a memorable soundbite which I hope will last, ''I fear that if we lean too far to the left, we will have nothing left.''

If this go viral it will be shorten to, "lean left till nothing is left"

I had warned about this in a post yesterday too.

But I fear all is lost because her in now shorthand, "CPF is not your money" will eclipse the other catch phrase.

Look, even the PM had chosen to quote her on CPF as "our money".

I don't know who advises the PM on communication. Often I found him making poor choices in timing and words.

I told myself, this is so silly. This is your left leaning budget and you seem to be coming across as reluctant. As if we had forced your hand. So you are at the end of the day only interested in being PM than doing what is good for this little country? Your PAP is more important than Singapore? This perception is very damaging to your party. People will stop trusting you and only do so because there is no choice. Given time, alternatives will appear. You must be wanted than be forced on the voters. If you do not agree with us, you must champion your views until you succeed or resign if you fail. A leader must act by his convictions not just by what the voters want. You would be reduced to a waiter in a restaurant.

Mr. PM, few people would bother to spend the 18 minutes to listen to Chia Yong Yong. You ought to know better that your message would be misunderstood. The resources needed to correct a mis-perception is simply not worth it and often unsuccessful.

Chia Yong Yong's speech.

Prof Tan: Students should take public transport

I have got to put this up because while I was sleeping the number of likes shot up to more than 480! The PM and his minister colleagues should take note. Their persuasions to the people will be falling on deaf years for many people. In other words they will be ineffective and all over "peanuts". Why are we in such a sorry state?

But that is what happen when money becomes an issue to individuals, family and society!

and this was in response to Prof Tan's speech in Parliament yesterday.

Anyway nobody will listen to the good prof. Those who agree with him are already doing so without his urging. Those who think otherwise would not be convinced with statements like these. For me I do whatever is best given our situation. We are very clear what we want and so everything falls into the right places.

If you really want to toughen the students up, public transport is not the way to go. For those who do not live too far away from school, try walking with that heavy school bag to school.

My point? So what if you are a professor? Nobody cares for your PhD and so will not listen to your advice. We are educated and experienced enough to work out such matters for ourselves. Tell us something more insightful and useful.

Budget 2015 and beyond: Beyond Temasek?

Looked like members of the house asked practically every question they could if Temasek should be tapped under the NIR to fund a national budget that is growing because of greater social spending. They forget to ask what it takes to win elections. They simply assumed that we will grow an attitude of entitlement. Now if they conclude this from their MPS, I don't blame them. Most of my friends do not show up at MPS. The majority of Singaporeans do not show up at MPS. If we can be spoiled, we don't deserve to be independent. If we are destined to be spoiled, there is nothing the PAP or any replacement can do anything about.

So better to encourage the best from us then to assume the worst, which is the path eventually to contempt and losing elections! This is simply provoking us to stupidly cut our nose only to spite our face which I suspect is the case with public littering.

We tap the GIC and now Temasek too in the Net Investment Returns framework because we either don't collect enough taxes or prefer to lighten the tax burden. I hope it is the latter but it would ideally be neither.

If we don't collect enough taxes, we are not living within our means. If we are so good at using tax as the device to be attractive to business, we are in a price war. Both are pretty early leading indicators, years ahead for farseeing leaders on what needed to be done early to keep us most relevant and prosperous to the world. But we weren't doing that.

Today the public perception is that the government collected too much money and our poor and aged suffer from their stinginess. Voters would not support any government spending beyond our means. So I wonder why the government is now starting to go overboard in the other direction. I thought the PM said governing is like cooking fish - very gently and carefully? But he and his colleagues are too impatient and anxious for results. This is a common problem with every government in the world. Bang, bang and bang is how they all govern.

Like I said many times if we are so similar and only better than most governments we don't deserve to be special. How could we when we aren't doing the things to be extraordinary?

Buying Online: Beware the impostors

Wifey said go ahead and order the Xiaomi wireless headset. I said better let me check if Xiaomi even sell such a product!

I made my check and Xiaomi does not sell bluetooth headsets.

This sort of misrepresentation is legend on eBay, Qoo10 and many other sites.

Such merchants can make some quick and dirty money but we also learn quite quickly.

Unfortunately such odious sellers will always be with us. There are enough careless people and suckers around.

SMRT: Bad start for 2015

Finally the first member of the family was caught in an MRT train incident. It was only a matter of time and by now the greater majority of residents here must have had experienced it at least once if not many times. Social media corroborates with my simple guess.

Over FM 93.8 this morning I heard LTA demanding a thorough investigation and explanation from SMRT. After hearing this so often we are so tired of this that some of us must even have memorized their lines.

Forget about apologizing. By definition the apology is to admit fault and work toward not repeating the error. Serial apologies only cheapen the act to the point of insult.

I am sure there will be a political cost for the PAP. Just don't know how much and they must be damn worried if there would be a major train fault during elections time.

Update: 2:15 pm

Remember!

and who cares if you win such an international award. It only make the award look very bad. 

Lee Kuan Yew's most painful words

"I wish I can meet my wife in the hereafter, But I don't think I will. I just cease to exist just as she has ceased to exist"

These must be the most painful words anyone can utter especially when we know how much he loved her, with all of himself.

So the man was already dying slowly that he might not even notice and misread it as ageing. With his brilliant mind does he not grasp the futility of it all?

Without hope how could he continue to live? I don't know how, but I hope and pray he finds hope.