TR EMERITUS

Not me who says this, but a reader from TRE who pointed out that if the PAP had had walkovers in the constituencies where the parties led by s/o JBJ, Meng Seng, Lim Tean, and P Ravi and Michelle Lee stood, the PAP’s share of the vote would be less than 58.7%. (I didn’t verify the figures but it sounds about right because the PAP thrashed the oppo clowns in these areas.) So Tolonglah Opposition Parties, stop trying to be Indian Chiefs and boosting your own self inflated egos. Become activists, become NGOs, but stay away from polling. Stop insulting us with your mediocre performances. Veron Rahim writing in TRE Yes, by calling s/o JBJ, Meng Seng, Lim Tean, P Ravi and Michelle Lee “useful idiots”, I’m putting words into the writer’s mouth. But the facts he points out and which I amplify out justifies my action. Tharman’s GRC won the biggest majority (75%) and PM’s GRC (72%) the second biggest majority. Surely these %ages helped boast the PAP 61% share of the popular vote? Btw, either Michelle Lee or P Ravi said they “won” in Jurong GRC by “losing”. “Won” as in helping the PAP? As did Goh Meng Seng. Kate Spade Tin had a 6 point swing in her favour bringing her share of the popular vote to 72%. Well done Kate, she put Chinese male chauvinist Meng Seng in the gutter where he belongs. The piece in full GE2020 shows us that we need less ‘Indian Chief’ opposition parties around * Take Note Only Contested Seats are Counted. Since 2011 all seats have been contested. But from 2006 and prior, only the contested seats determined the % of votes. So if the Reform Party and Red Dot United did not run, and Jurong, AMK and Radin Mas were walkovers, the PAP mandate would only be 58.7% It would be even less, if People’s Voice and PPP did not contest Mountbatten and Macpherson. Lee Hsien Loong can still proudly say strong mandate because these parties allowed him to. No PAP Prime Minister has had any vote share below 60%. It should have happened this time. It’s not about giving them a walkover, what’s the point if the contest only serves their purpose to justify their support? I dare say if a stronger opposition party had contested these areas, they would have still lost but their percentage would have been in the mid 30% or higher and that would also have brought the winning percentage for the PAP below 60%. So Tolonglah Opposition Parties, stop trying to be Indian Chiefs and boosting your own self inflated egos. Become activists, become NGOs, but stay away from polling. Stop insulting us with your mediocre performances. And no to you combining either. Your entry will not help the Worker’s Party, PSP or SDP. Instead you can become ordinary members of these parties and help them in the groundwork. Or become bloggers. Veron Rahim     Cynical Investor Cynical Investor blogs at Thoughts of a Cynical Investor .  Read More →

I’ve just blocked a former girlfriend from texting me. We had gotten along well enough and then Singapore’s Covid-19 circuit breaker measures came in. I could not keep in touch and then for reasons best known to her, she thought it was appropriate to send my daughter inappropriate messages. The kid told her to stop and after running into her, I told her to stop harassing the kid. Despite that, she persisted in sending me messages about how she would invite my daughter to her office for drinks and would come to the house to meet the kid. At that point, both the kid and I thought enough was enough and so she was blocked. I’m made to think of this incident because of the recent arrest of Ghislaine Maxwell on the charge of providing underage sex-slaves to the disgraced financier, Jeffrey Epstein. As well as being excessively rich and having a preference for young girls, Mr. Epstein and Ms. Maxwell (I’m old enough to remember the yacht that was named after her) counted the rich and influential, including the current Occupant of the White House and the Duke of York, as part of their social circle. [LINK] The case of Mr. Epstein and his associates raises one of the oldest and most common issues faced by people all over the world – namely the issues of sex, power and money and in the pursuit of sex, power and money, are there any issues of where we draw the line. As I’ve confessed in previous postings, I’m a self-professed cad. I hate the idea of being exclusive to anyone (a case of why stick to one when there are so many) and I can’t help to look at the nubile things that walk past me when I’m in the office area (Singapore’s financial district). Looking at a woman’s body and being able to enjoy a woman’s body is like getting to look at a piece of art and enjoying a tasty meal at the same time My only defense to saying everything that I’ve just said is that I’m probably no different from most heterosexual men. The need to get laid is one of the few recognized human needs that transcends race, religion and so on (as a Jewish architect said – “My dick isn’t racist”). However, human nature is such that the simple male need to release sperm is complicated. While the male brain is wired to release sperm, the female brain is wired to ensure that any offspring she produces are well taken care of. Hence, while men look for nubile young things, women tend to look for signs of strength and stability or as my mother would argue – you want the guy who will be hanging around once the kid comes out. Hence, the history of the human sexual experience has been about women trading their bodies in return for men providing for the well being of them and their families. In prehistoric times, this meant the guys who got laid were inevitably those who could bring home the biggest share of the kill. These days, it inevitably means the guys who earn big bucks. It is socially acceptable and many cases a status symbol for an older man to have a much younger companion. Say what you like about Donald Trump but having Melania by his side has not harmed his social standing. By comparison, Emanuel Marcon gets a few funny looks for the fact that he married a much older woman and has stepchildren who are his age. My Uncle Richard, who was a cad of the highest order, used to tell me, “No such thing as a good-looking woman over 25 and make sure your next wife is half your age.” It’s even more acceptable in Asia, where levels of poverty are high. Asia’s red-light districts are filled with young girls hopping to escape poverty and a girl who marries a much older (and often Western) man is considered a hero for finding a route out of poverty for her family. I get the attraction trade off here. Which man doesn’t want to wake up next to a hot bod? Which woman wants to reject the guy who can provide a good home for her? As an old friend used to say of Prince Charles, “What man kicks out a beautiful blonde for an old hag?” Yes, I get the attraction and the trade-off. Yet, despite that I also believe that there have to be limits. There needs to be mutual respect and both parties need to be able to able to understand what they’re getting into. Hence, I get repulsed when I hear of a “trade in children.” I take myself as an example. As I get older, I notice physical attraction more and the issue of “age-appropriate” seems to matter less. My main defense is usually, I’m not the first 40 plus something to look at young nubile things with a certain amount of lust. Yet, I remind myself that I am first and foremost a father of a young woman and my initial thoughts always go back to the question of who do I want her to find in life. If she’s meant to find love and happiness with an older man, then I won’t stop it but do I want her to be the plaything of an old man? The answer is clearly no and that always brings me back to normalcy. I become conscious that my behavior might affect her perceptions on what a man should be. Hence, while I might find a younger girl attractive at a glance, I remember that I’m dad before anything else. Mr. Epstein, the Occupant and the Duke crossed a line in their pursuit of young, underage girls. There’s something not quite right about people with power, money and influence using children for their own needs. I understand the need to get laid, I’ve been guilty of succumbing to that need on too many occasions. However, a line has to be drawn and people who have said no and are unable to give consent should be protected with the full extent of the law.   Tang Li *Although I’ve been based mainly in Singapore for nearly two decades, I’ve had the privilege of being able meet people who have crossed borders and cultures. I’ve befriended ministers and ambassadors and worked on projects involving a former head of state. Yet, at the same time, I’ve had the privilege of befriending migrant labourers and former convicts. All of them have a story to tell. All of them add to the fabric of life. I hope to express the stories that inspire us to create life as it should be      Read More →

The level of insanity is quite pervasive in Singapore. Many ministers are insane. The civil servants also get the same disease. Why do I say this? I search Google for the number of visitors into Singapore every day, during the pandemic and the border closing. Do you want to know what I get? Just follow this link (obtained through Google). I clicked through a few levels of links and got lost. Now I became insane. The whole country is getting insane. Why can't they just present a simple table to show the number of visitors into Singapore every day? Why do they have to present the data in this troublesome and confusing way? The insanity start at the very top. It has now infected a large segment of the population. Tan Kin Lian      Read More →