The Singapore Daily

“When Shan, a second year political science student, asked Dr Balakrishnan about Singaporeans who were affected by the mini-bond fiasco, the minister in turn asked her whether he should approach the problem as an economist or politician. Her simple reply—to look at the issue from the eyes of an “ordinary Singaporean”—won the applause of the audience.”
The Enquirer

“..we see very obvious signs that the govt will be the last among nations to help its citizens AND only if whatever actions it follows will protect its competitiveness, not that it is the right and decent thing to do for your citizens.”
commentator_sc

“For a while this generated growth for our financial sector - a key goal of the govt. But there is a price to be paid when greed overcomes prudence and fiduciary duty is forgotten….traded away for commissions..”
Lucky Tan

“That’s life, if you want good rewards, you have to take risks. Otherwise, leave your money with the CPF.”
Goh Chok Tong, Senior Minister, Chairman of MAS.

“Charities should seek extinction rather than growth. The mantra of business is growth.”
Dr Lee Siew Peng

I think this should apply to the Government as well. Other than foreign policy and national defense and maybe one or two other areas, the Goverment’s main job should be to empower its people in self preservation and the pursuit of happiness. Sadly the current administration doesn’t think that way. Singaproe Inc was a good plan in the 70s and 80s but its an outdated model to take our country forward today.
g

Recommended reads for the week after the break.

High Notes and Minibombs
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Structured Products : List of questions for Parliament
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: General advice to investors of structured products
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Petition #3 (To Mrs Lim Hwee Hua)
- Sgpolitics: Singapore struggles to play catch-up with Hong Kong in Lehman-linked structured products issue
- TOC: The MAS – a desperate headless chicken?
- ST Discussion Board: The right and decent thing to do for your citizens [Recommended]
- Where Bears Roam Free: The Sound of Silence - Is our PM competent?
- Singapore Life and Times: Toxic times
- MAS: Reply to PQs on the Sale of Structured Products to Retail Investors [Vids][Comments @ TKL's Blog]
- TOC: Loss of hard earned savings
- TOC: Mis-selling 101 - a respond to minister’s remarks
- TOC: When silence is not golden [Recommended]
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Views from an ex-private banker
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Low : Be More Proactive MAS!
- The Enquirer: Minister shouldn’t have politicised forum [Recommended]
- Xtralicious: The highnotes/ minibonds issue - difference between HK and Singapore
- Bad News on the Doorstep: We need a watchdog to watch the watchdogs
- Singapore Alternatives: Volunteers Needed
- My sketchbook: Society of lame ducks
- Xtralicious: Help for all affected investors
- TOC: Has our Prime Minister gone missing again (Part Two)?
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Where does the BUCK STOP?
- The Wayang Party Club of Singapore: Comparison of how MAS and HKMA are handling the complaints of Lehman investors
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Victims of our leaders’ aspirations…. [Recommended]
- Choosing my own adventure: Lim Hng Kiang again!
- Think For Me, Singapore: Hard to please Singaporeans [Thanks GT]
- Singapore and the stuff: Credit crisis jokes
- Sgpolitics: Call a spade a spade
- Under The Willow Tree: Why Regulation for Minibonds…?
- Insane Polygons: Failure To Lead
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Speaker’s Corner - 25 October 2008
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: A fair compensation
- Hard Hitting in the Lion City: A False Dawn
- My Singapore News: A gaping wide hole!
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Demand for Compensation
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Requests for media interviews

Financial Crisis
- Insane Polygons: Condescension
- Singapore Skeptic: Is CPF really safe?
- Singapore Alternatives: A Nation in Gamble
- My sketchbook: MAS’ U-turn on bank deposits
- StaticVariable: Sudden Recession?
- mrbrown: Singaporeans, take a hike
- The Wayang Party Club of Singapore: Marina Bay begins “massive” recruitment exercise for 40 jobs
- Singapore Life and Times: How the Markets really work
- Fwd: How to explain the current financial crisis to a layman
- The Lycan Times: Random Discourse

GIC, Temasek State Funds Investments
- Blowin’ In The Wind: The Singapore - Merrill Lynch story

Strangers in a Strange Land
- groundnotes: Pssst, want Singapore citizenship? Its disposable [Recommended]
- The Sun Chair Critic: On Foreign Talents [Recommended]
- BothSidesOfTheJohorStraits: Headline: “Foreign workers live at sea; Middle-class Singaporean rejoice!”
- COM101: Multi-racial, perhaps not
- The boy who knew too much: The message and the messenger
- this lush garden within: Singaporeans - Stop referring to foreign workers as TALENTS
- BothSidesOfTheJohorStraits: Yippee!!! Singapore no longer has ‘no resources’!
- Military Life: Memoirs of a Conscript in the Lion City: Wong kan seng says Govt will always consider S’poreans’ interests above foreigners’
- BothSidesOfTheJohorStraits: SM Goh says S’pore needs policies that favour citizens in the face of foreign talent. What about our employment policies then??
- joie de vivre: Mind Your Language
- Readings From A Political Duo-ble: Adopting a rights and care approach for Migrant Workers in Singapore
- two cents worth: Population and Health: The overcrowded Singapore

Lee vs Chee
- Singapore Indian Voice: TBT 18 trial begins on Thursday
- TOC: PAP makes no apologies for defamation suits, says Vivian Balakrishnan
- Singabloodypore: Defamation suits necessary, Singapore tells rights group
- Robert Amsterdam: Singapore and Freedom of the Press
- Sg_Ljers: Students start online paper
- Singapore Dino: The Judiciary has scandalised itself
- Jacob’s Weblog: The TBT 18 trial is a rape of the Constitution of Singapore
- Singabloodypore: Singapore’s shame: ordeal of Chee Soon Juan
- Singapore Indian Voice: What we must reclaim: Seelan Palay
- Blowin’ In The Wind: Singapore’s sad business with the business press
- Jacob’s Weblog: Tak Boleh Tahan trial - First day of State persecution of activists
- Sgpolitics: Why I participated in the TBT protest, and why I pleaded guilty
- Singabloodypore: AGC cannot decide whether to use video or not
- TOC: 19 in court to face illegal assembly and procession charges
- TOC: Amnesty Int’l calls for support for “peaceful activists”
- Singabloodypore: Human Rights Goes on Trial in Singapore with Chee Soon Juan Case
- Jotman: Singapore’s Funny Pages
- HWZ: No Kangaroo T-shirts please, we are Singaporeans

Parliament 20 Oct 2008
- Sgpolitics: Parliamentary Snapshots (20 & 21 Oct)
- Siew Kum Hong: Speech on the Constitution of Republic of Singapore (Amendment) Bill: 20 October 2008
- TOC: WP does not support Elected Presidency still
- Gerald Giam: Now who is the pork barrel champion?
- groundnotes: The Art of Political Apophasis [Recommended]
- 勿忘我: Canada rushes in, where Singaporeans fear to tread
- a blog day’s work: Of reserves, auctions and the elected presidency
- Feed Me To The Fish: Goodbye Gracious, Goodbye Courtesy!

Power to Cost the People
- Petition Online: Revise of SP Services Tariff
- The boy who knew too much: What Heng-Cheong Leong of Myapplemenu doesn’t understand
- Choosing my own adventure: Electricity tariff hike - parliament
- Gerald Giam: Govt should play bigger role in managing price increases
- My Singapore News: Preventing supernormal profits

Re Education
- The Lycan Times: Career Guidance
- Mr Wang Says So: Students And Their Career Choices
- Warblings Of A Little Bird: On NPCC and NCC

Housing
- My Singapore News: Reaching for the pinnacles the profitable way

Jurong By-Elections
- Siew Kum Hong: Clarifications by Prime Minister in debate on motion on by-elections: 27 August 2008

Melamine in my Milk
- Singapore Agnes Tan: Malaysia Julie, Khong Guan and Khian Guan biscuit found melamine

Daily Discourse
- Ian On The Red Dot: The Singapore Government Is Not Corrupt
- Chee Wai’s Random Musings: Ridiculous Rules!
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: SM Goh : Planned Leadership Succession make Singapore stable
- Hard Hitting in the Lion City: More harm than good
- The Wayang Party Club of Singapore: Economic rights before political rights for most Singaporeans [Recommended]
- The Void Deck: The Roomy Space for Satire in Singapore
- TOC: Get out of town
- Organic-Ally: Charity and a culture of dependency [Recommended]
- Enjoy the Breeze: Perspectives - Why Chiam and Chee Soon Juan were at loggerheads
- AirKosong.com: In Singapore, you analyse press freedom independent of the political freedom and fear!
- TOC: Some lives are not worth living?
- vinyarb: Let’s play guess which route the bus will take today [Thanks vinyarb]

Life, the universe and everything
- two cents worth: Urbanisation, necessarily ‘evil’?
- The Rot Within: Singapore’s Performance in the Legatum Prosperity Index
- inferno’s pensieve: First Principles
- Ong Jiin Joo: One Media, One Purpose: To Inform, Move and Inspire
- Delvinlee’s Weblog: Nine Emperor Gods Festival 2008 [Thanks Delvin]
- Balderdash: Why I chose a China bride
- Choosing my own adventure: The Raffles merger
- Ong Jiin Joo: The Star Challenge Finals
- SG_Ljers: New SAF Uniform

Now Showing
- vinyarb: Tropic Thunder m-m-m-makes me happy..

Infoblogoramus
- Ong Jiin Joo: Some Startup@Singapore Publicity
- Balderdash: Making it S’pore’s 1st ever zombie march!
- GoLibrary: Seeking An Audience: A Symposium on Singapore Literature in English [Thanks Laremy]
- Sg_Ljers: An evening with I Am David Sparkle [Friday 24 Oct]