Countdown to Elections
- Sgpolitics.net: Has Singapore a Future?

Housing Singaporeans
- All About Money: Oh what a tangle web..
- Who Moved My Singapore Cheese: Farce

Strangers in a Strange Land
- The Temasek Review: GLC Keppel Corp mass-recruiting Malaysians for jobs in Singapore

Singaporeans are fed, up with progress!
- TOC: $2 billion in PAP town councils’ sinking funds but need to increase charges?
- The Temasek Review: Declining wages of Singaporeans and the continued denial of PAP leaders

Re education
- The Temasek Review: 3 local varsities raise fees for Singapore students again

Lee vs Chee
- TOC: ST and LHZB censor Chee’s letter on PAP undermining Singapore’s interests

Daily Discourse
- Trapper’s Swamp: Broad definitions make for bad laws
- New Asia Republic: On rights and freedom of action [Thanks Donaldson]
- The Temasek Review: Only 11 cases of successful Public Assistance (PA) applicants from July 2008 to December 2009
- guanyinmiao’s musings: The Same Old Chinese / Mandarin Dilemma
- The Kent Ridge Common: KRMF 2010 takes a positive turn

Life, the universe and everything
- The Long and Winding Road: The magical hill with a fairy-tale like mansion that was Mount Sophia
- Singaporean Skeptic: It is called football (not soccer)!

Selected News Stories [Thanks Gerald Ho]
- CNN Go: It’s finally open — First look (and ride) at Universal Studios Singapore
- Reuters: Universal Studios Singapore courts 8 for lucky launch
- Crosscut: Singapore’s national dish: Hainan chicken rice
- The Age: Australia faces housing affordability ‘time bomb’: developer
- Reuters: Recession left “walking wounded” workers
- NYT Opinion: Changing the Vatican’s Response to Abuse
- Reuters: The promise of seven blood baths in Bangkok and no violence [bloody pics]
- Crack Two: Pollution makes for nice pics [large pics]

Maki Horikita (堀北真希 born 6 Oct 1988) is a Japanese actress. She had her acting debut in 2003 as a U-15 idol and has since starred in a number of Japanese television dramas, television and magazine ads, and films. Born Marina Hara, Horikita started appearing in TV advertisements in 2003. Her first photobooks featured her as a gravure model, but she gradually dropped gravure modeling to concentrate on her acting career. After gaining much recognition in numerous TV dramas, she bagged a Best Actress award for her lead role in the 2007 adaptation of the gender-bender manga Hana-Kimi (Hanazakari no Kimitachi e, 花样少年少女). In the same year, she was chosen by Vogue Nippon as one of its eleven recipients of the prestigious Women of the Year award.

Pictures from her last photobook S (Oct 2008) after the break.

Photobook S Launch Press Conference

Countdown to Elections
- Seelan Palay’s Blog: Why bloggers must disregard cooling off day
- The Temasek Review: Comparison of LIVE parliamentary debates of 5 countries and the “wayang” in the Singapore Parliament

Housing Singaporeans
- Singapore Alternatives: HDB’s Flawed Policy Direction
- The Temasek Review: Prices of resale HDB flats may rise further as PR quota reached in several estates
- En Bloc Block Blog: “Where laws end, tyranny begins.”

We are agsinst Capital Punishment
- TOC: Do we not have room for remorse, repentence and conversion?
- Rachel Zeng: Merely a co-incidence?

ERPains, Trains & Automobiles
- TOC: Re-tune the COE quota
- department of crappy engineering: manned but unmanned

Healthcare & Healthcare Providers
- The Gigamole Diaries: Cord blood banking - should you, or shouldn’t you?

Daily Discourse
- The Temasek Review: Why are surveys and rankings about Singapore always spectacular?
- TOC: Don’t stand in the way of evolving social workers

Life, the universe and everything
- The Pattern Trader: Why Traders Fail – Lesson 1
- Small steps for Social PR: Are Starhub MaxMobile Elite Users Getting What They Are Paying for?

Selected News Stories [Thanks Gerald Ho]
- Guardian: Heroin smuggler challenges Singapore death sentence
- Bloomberg: Singapore’s Export Growth Accelerates as Recovery Strengthens
- Reuters: In asset shift, Temasek checks out tech sector
- CNET: Singapore telcos talk LTE: Should you care?
- Washington Post: A stunning AIDS fact
- BBC: Too many visit GPs with minor ailments, campaigners say
- Reuters: Business must change to earn back the public’s trust

Countdown to Elections
- TOC: TOC Editorial: Cooling-off day may lead to heated confusion

Housing Singaporeans
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Debt and Delusion..
- Trapper’s Swamp: HDB flat prices to remain high, COV to stay

We are agsinst Capital Punishment
- Lianain Films: “For Me, I’m Hoping For A Miracle” [Thanks Seelan]

Strangers in a Strange Land
- Blowin’ In The Wind: More locals than foreigners hired after 2 years

ERPains, Trains & Automobiles
- guanyinmiao’s musings: Elevating Singapore’s Public Transportation By A Notch
- Brad’s Blog: MyTransport.SG: Why LTA Really Killed the ‘Park-a-Lot’ iPhone App

Healthcare & Healthcare Providers
- The Gigamole Diaries: Unethical screening - a timely warning

GIC, Temasek State Fund Investments
- The Grand Moofti Speaks: Singapore, Temasek, good governance and the Linaburg-Maduell Transparency Index

Woman No Enough
- TOC: Gagged by the church – Foyce Le Xuan
- Singapore Recalcitrant: The Misguided Heroism of Minister George Yeo
- The Sketch Times: Ohhh… Jacky Boyyyyy…
- Jarrod’s Infernal Emissions: I’mA brief interlude.. [Thanks Seelan]

Re education
- Random Thoughts Of A Free Thinker: “From an elite school”;《名校出身》

Daily Discourse
- journalism.sg: Independent Judiciary requires respect and support of public
- The Temasek Review: Why do we need so many PAP strawberries MPs in Parliament?
- Michael Fernandez: The Scars of Detention [Thanks Seelan]

Life, the universe and everything
- The Temasek Review: Singapore National Football Team: Let’s talk about statistics
- The Long and Winding Road: My stroll through the streets of that made up the Mahallah: Selegie Road

Now Showing
- Open Contours: Beyond the Model [Model Citizens]
- Cooler Insights: Of Love, Loss and Luscious CGI [The Lovely Bones]

Selected News Stories [Thanks Gerald Ho]
- Free Malaysia Today: Falling prey in the Lion City
- BusinessInsider: Singapore’s Huge Bet On Sex And Gambling Is About To Pay Off Big Time
- Guardian Gallery: Thailand protesters pour human blood on government’s gates
- NYT Health: When Your Partner Is a Sex Addict
- BBC: Baldness ‘could be good for your health’ say scientists
- Reuters: People leave unique trail of germs
- Dailymail: The super-sized 43st mother who is determined to become the world’s fattest woman
- Boston.com: Shanghai prepares for Expo 2010 [large photos]

Super White

via Who Moved My Singapore Cheese, who has dedicated this song to Mr Affordable.

Reviews | Guides
- LesterChan.net: Command & Conquer 4: Tiberian Twilight
- Tech65: Gear65 #53 – Handii Go10 Tablet PC
- Techgoondu: Free Unlimited Plants vs Zombies, Bejewelled2, Zuma and more

Housing Singaporeans
- Singapore Alternatives: Give us HDB Flats AT COST, NOT 30yrs mortgage Enslavement!

Singaporeans are fed, up with progress!
- The Temasek Review: Wages of Singaporeans declined by 3.2% as PAP ministers increase their own pay by 8.8%
- Blowin’ In The Wind: Long-term unemployment rising in Singapore

Woman No Enough
- Singapore Aspirations: On the Jack Neo sex scandal and sexual harassment in the workplace [Thanks singaporeaspirant]
- Trapper’s Swamp: It might be real news now

Daily Discourse
- New Asia Republic: Finding our way in New Asia
- The Rot Within: Two orthogonal distinctions
- Icarus Flew Too High: The Human Rights Paradox
- Barnyard Chorus: This is STupid
- Silent Eloquence: Singapore, the misunderstood child

Life, the universe and everything
- Dee Kay Dot As Gee: Singapore National Figure Skating Championships to be held in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia
- Good Morning Yesterday: Central Business District Petrol Stations
- Wild Shores of Singapore: What do you think about diving in Singapore?

Selected News Stories [Thanks Gerald Ho]
- The Independent: Singapore bling: Is the city-state ready to party?
- Reuters: Big rise in arms imports threatens SE Asia: report
- AFP: Developing world has launched ‘arms race’: think-tank
- Reuters IN: INTERVIEW - Opposition chief tells Singaporeans: Don’t be afraid
- Reuters: UPDATE 1-ST Telemedia buys stake in Malaysian 3G firm
- Reuters: Q+A-Is Malaysia heading to an early election?
- BBC: Media tycoons wanted: Make your own newspaper
- Reuters: Herpes and other most-read surprises
- Guardian: Absent-mindedness is a middle-aged male problem, research shows
- BBC: Deep breathing ‘cuts stress as much as massage’
- NYT Gadgetwise: America’s Top Phone Makers? Not Who You Think
- DailyFinance: We Are the World Wide Web! Happy 25th Birthday, Dot-Com

Countdown to Elections
- TOC: Time for someone new to drive Singapore
- The Kent Ridge Common: Does the alternative media have anything to fear?
- Majulah!: New rulings for political chatters online.
- Singabloodypore: PAP nervous about New Media, introduces “guidelines”
- The Temasek Review: No need for Minister Lui Tuck Yew to teach netizens how to “self-regulate” themselves
- Mindblogging Stuff: Heaven & Hell (political version)

We are against Capital Punishment
- TOC: The story of a boy
- Seelan Palay’s Blog: Yong Vui Kong’s appeal on March 15

GIC, Temasek State Fund Investments
- The Asia File: Temasek’s Malaysian governance problem: what happened next
- Yours Truly Singapore: ‘Not realistic’ for GIC to avoid making any losses

Healthcare & Healthcare Providers
- Singapore M.D.: HIV in Singapore

Woman No Enough
- Irreligious: There’s a Jack Neo in all of us
- Cooler Insights: The Age of (Im)Morality and Immortality
- Dee Kay Dot As Gee: Jack Neo Affair Scandal Press Conference
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: Morality is not so easy..
- Icarus Flew Too High: Jack and George, o..
- The Lycan Times: Give us a break!
- TOC: Getting into bed with Jack Neo
- AWARE: AWARE’s comments on the Jack Neo affair [Thanks Gerald]
- The Star: Backseat frolics backfire [Thanks Gerald]

Daily Discourse
- TOC: Press Muse – Singaporeans dreaming
- New Asia Republic: Rights: The foundation of a free society
- guanyinmiao’s musings: Cease The Climate Change Lethargy
- Singapore Life and Times: A sharing we will go
- Singaporean Skeptic: Some Singaporeans are Real Bastards.

Life, the universe and everything
- Growing your tree of prosperity: If women are not choosy, men will have no standards. [Thanks Wai Chung]
- Eco WALK the talk: Knock, Knock, your Green Postman is here! [Thanks Bhavani]

Selected News Stories [Thanks Gerald Ho]
- Guardian: Lehman Brothers: Repo 105 and other accounting tricks
- Reuters Dealzone: Graphic: How “Repo 105″ worked
- Reuters: Factbox: Examiner’s findings of claims against Lehman officers
- Business Insider: Will Ernst & Young Survive The Lehman Fiasco?
- AP: Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund starts to open up
- NYT Consults: Assessing Your Risk of a Heart Attack
- Guardian Gallery: Thousands protest in Bangkok

“The problem is that the ministers are asking workers to bite the bullet first.”
Ian

“We can no longer keep on churning out economic digits fit [only] for an industrialized society.”
Wong Wee Nam

“I can already imagine how someone will quote this one freaking incident and use it to justify that Singapore new media cannot be trusted.”
DK

“Productivity is only an economic indicator. By improving productivity, what do we seek to achieve?”
Donaldson Tan

“We have become addicted to government subsidies.”
Yawning Bread

This week’s roundup and recommended reads after the break.

Budget 2010
- TOC: Budget debate statistics: Uniquely Singapore? [Recommended]
- The Temasek Review: A disaster in the making: PAP’s “instant tree” mentality [Recommended]
- Diary of A Singaporean Mind: The TRUTH about Productivity..
- Ian On The Red Dot: Productivity & Wages – Which Is The Cause & The Effect
- Sgpolitics.net: Productivity: Senior Minister, is it that simple?
- Gerald Giam: Low Thia Khiang: It should not be all about economic benefit
- Tan Kin Lian’s Blog: Productivity and related issues
- Trapper’s Swamp: Low Thia Kiang vs Josephine Teo
- guanyinmiao’s musings: Growth For All
- Military Life: The SAF is Productive Because there are no foreigners in the SAF [Thanks Panzer]
- Musings From the Lion City: Why It Will Stay Just Talk
- SilentAssassin’s Archive: Foreign Worker ERP
- Singapore Dino: Has PM Lee gone into hiding?
- Singapore Recalcitrant: The Somnelent Deputy Prime Minister
- Singapore Alternatives: Budget Debate 2010 - Myths of HDB and 460K for poor over 60 years?
- The Temasek Review: 10 most unforgettable quotes from PAP MPs during the recent parliamentary “debate”
- Brad’s Blog: Productivity! Productivity! Productivity!
- Feed Me To The Fish: Daft & Dafter
- Yours Truly Singapore: Economic growth benefits all citizens
- Insane Polygons: Motivational Posters for the Elite 7
- New Asia Republic: The question of productivity [Recommended]
- New Asia Republic: How GST adds value [Recommended]
- Singapore Dino: PAP MP asks Khaw Boon Wan for “secret to looking young” during Parliament debate
- Dee Kay Dot As Gee: Who voted this Ong Ah Heng into Parliament?
- The Temasek Review: Appropriateness and integrity in the use of government statistics
- Times They Are A-Changin’: Large foreign workforce a buffer?
- Gerald Giam: Sylvia Lim: R&D spending needs to be accounted for
- Gerald Giam: Low Thia Khiang: Access to good mentors key to helping entrepreneurs succeed
- Trapper’s Swamp: There’s a time and place for everything
- Gerald Giam: Sylvia Lim: Increase size of cohort entering local universities

Housing Singaporeans
- Gerald Giam: Low Thia Khiang urges Govt to “seriously look” into housing options for homeless
- Bernard Aw’s Blog: PRs just moved to a lower indifference curve
- Singapore Social and Political Thoughts: Mr Mah, you are more than 4 years late!
- TOC: Malay homelessness – who was the quicker finger-pointer?
- Singapore Life and Times: Slow and steady
- Hear Ye! Hear Ye!: Random thoughts on public housing
- My Little Corner: Summary of HDB changes for Budget 2010
- Trapper’s Swamp: Wrong answers from the wrong questions [1][2]
- Yawning Bread: Breeding a subsidy mentality in housing [Recommended]
- Chee Wai’s Random Musing: Our dear MBT does not understand the idea behind market forces?
- Lianain Films: Homelessness Is Not A Dirty Word
- Yours Truly Singapore: Mah’s story is also Singapore’s story
- TOC: HDB: Homelessness due to policies? BTS better than BTO? 31,000 flats unsold, but nobody knows?
- Trapper’s Swamp: Homelessness is a policy issue

Harry Lee and the Dissident of Singaland
- Sam’s Thoughts: Gopalan Nair: Lee Kuan Yew suffers massive heart attack (a hoax)
- Icarus Flew Too High: The Gopalan Coup [Recommended]
- TOC: Gopalan Nair’s despicable hoax
- The Kent Ridge Common: The Real Rabbit out of Gopalan’s Hat
- Sgpolitics: Sgpolitics.net condemns Gopalan Nair’s actions in the strongest possible terms
- The Sun Shines on Singapore: Out Goes Gopolan’s Credibility (Not a Hoax)
- Dee Kay Dot As Gee: A step backward for free speech
- under a Pipala Tree: Bullshit Post
- I’m getting personal: Gopalan Nair deserves a smack on his head!!!!
- ambiguity: Gopalan Nair: Why So Serious?
- Because you’ve got all eyes on you no matter where you are: Gopalan Nair’s dirty little trick
- journalism.sg: Online hoax about Lee Kuan Yew’s health receives wide condemnation

Strangers in a Strange Land
- The Kent Ridge Common: Rethinking our population ‘problem’
- Growing your tree of prosperity: Some solutions to population growth and foreign workers. [Thanks Wai Chung]
- Military Life: The Tale of the (Local) Talent [Thanks Panzer]
- Petition Online: Employ Singaporeans First! [Thanks Gilbert]

Countdown to Elections
- kay poh chee: Bangla sweepers are now replaced by Singaporeans according to.. [Thank Jon]
- Yawning Bread: Foreign funding a necessary antidote in authoritarian states
- Bernard Aw’s Blog: Election for 8-year-olds
- The Temasek Review: PAP to amend constitution to increase the number of NCMPs in Parliament

Singaporeans are fed, up with progress!
- Trapper’s Swamp: S&C charges raised, still no transparency
- The Temasek Review: 2 PAP Town Councils raise their S&C charges as PAP ministers look forward to another pay hike
- The Void Deck: Town Councils increases S&CC – Give us some value! [Thanks Pek]
- TOC: Why not apply ‘town council logic’ to worker wages?

GIC, Temasek State Fund Investments
- Readings From A Political Duo-ble: Who is making the investment decisions for Singapore’s GIC and Temasek?
- FT.com: Singapore fund braced for SFr5.5bn UBS loss
- The Temasek Review: PAP Minister: “Not realistic” for GIC to avoid losses
- Singaporean Skeptic: PAP Minister dodges the question by pretending to answer a different question
- The Temasek Review: Prudential – AIA deal: A deal of epic proportions

Healthcare & Healthcare Providers
- Singapore Life and Times: Bumped out
- Sgpolitics.net: Should treatment of chronic and terminal illnesses in Singapore enjoy better subsidies?
- Mathia Lee: Don’t ignore pain, get treated early
- Singapore Alternatives: Sorry no enough Minister Khaw

Twilight in Paradise. To Live and Die in SG
- Singaporean Skeptic: PAP hides the failure of their retirement policies by passing the buck to you.

ERPains, Trains & Automobiles
- New Asia Republic: Public transport for 6.5 million
- Brad’s Blog: LTA Trying To Scam Singaporeans’ Money?

Sin City
- Singapore Dino: Al Jazeera holds debate on Singapore’s Casinos
- Global Issues: Singapore: As Casino Opens, Watch for Its Social Impact Begins
- Al Jazeera English: Singapore’s big bet [Times GMT: 12 Mar-0300hrs(+8);
13 Mar-0530,1730; 14 Mar-1130; 15 Mar-1630; 16 Mar-1430; 17 Mar-0830; 18 Mar-0630] [Thanks Gerald]

Lee vs Chee
- Sgpolitics.net: Sgpolitics.net salutes Tak Boleh Tahan protesters

Woman No Enough
- The Kent Ridge Common: A PBM – but human, all too human.
- Mr Wang Says So: The Sorry Story of Jack Neo
- Musings From the Lion City: Singapore’s Tiger Woods
- Sam’s Thoughts: Jack Neo is not Tiger Woods
- Trapper’s Swamp: Who Jack Neo jumps is none of our business [Thanks Terence]
- You just can’t miss it!: Singapore’s Most Popular/Notorious Film Director at the Moment is also My Fellow Church Member
- Singapore Life and Times: Grievous Hurt
- Carpe Diem: Enough with the affairs

Sorry Rony Recants
- Used Brains For Sale: Ending the War

Religion
- Laïcité: Belief is not a Choice
- Irreligious: What makes a fundamentalist? [Thanks Terence]

Daily Discourse
- Blowin’ In The Wind: Singaporeans richer than Americans?
- TOC: The language divide
- Sgpolitics.net: Law enforcement nightmare at Geylang
- Rachel Zeng: Singaporean women are useless because they are less ‘obedient’?
- Seelan Palay’s Blog: My thoughts on Singaporean men wanting brides from China & Vietnam
- guanyinmiao’s musings: True Singaporeans Will Always Be There, Everywhere
- Singapore Social and Political Thoughts: Who were the culprits in the hit and run case?
- SilentAssassin’s Archive: Victims and Menaces
- Wild Shores of Singapore: Sea level rise in Singapore: what effects?
- The Asia File: What Singapore could learn from Rupert Murdoch [Thanks Ben]
- Blowin’ In The Wind: Singapore Press Holdings and Abu Dhabi Media Company
- The Kent Ridge Common: YourSingapore: One of the Worst?
- TOC: Summoning hither the dolphins
- Sam’s Thoughts: Eugene Loh’s obsession with cross-dressing… on television!
- Musings From the Lion City: Obedient Wives
- Seelan Palay’s Blog: Dr Chee Soon Juan: We must believe (Video)
- The Enquirer: Be careful what you wish for [Thanks Seelan]
- Zach’s Thought Blot: How Small Countries Can Take Advantage of Globalisation
- Yu-Kym’s Blog: Singapore government supports animal testing. Do you?
- My Little Corner: LTE? First Resolve the 3G problem

Life, the universe and everything
- Open Contours: At the Ringside of the Global Village
- Moving Higher In Souped-up Heuristically Agon Moment: Singapore 2010 Odyssey
- Otterman speaks: Photos from this morning’s OCBC Cycle Singapore [flickr]
- Daring Fireball: This Apple-HTC Patent Thing [via Balderdash]
- Barnyard Chorus: International Women’s Day
- Lianain Films: The Maestro’s Daughters
- Hear Ye! Hear Ye!: Poor Jack Neo
- Brad’s Blog: Small Time ‘my paper’ Critic Jill Alphonso Bashes Cameron and Avatar
- TOC: Survey on IT knowledge among Singaporeans
- The Long and Winding Road: A hidden secret that one of the bridges at the mouth of the river once held
- Tantalizine: History of the Shirt

Infoblogoramus
- SGEntrepreneurs: Events For The Week – 6-13 Mar

Countdown to Elections
- The Temasek Review: PAP to amend constitution to increase the number of NCMPs in Parliament

Housing Singaporeans
- TOC: HDB: Homelessness due to policies? BTS better than BTO? 31,000 flats unsold, but nobody knows?
- Trapper’s Swamp: Homelessness is a policy issue

Singaporeans are fed, up with progress!
- TOC: Why not apply ‘town council logic’ to worker wages?

Twilight in Paradise. To Live and Die in SG
- Singaporean Skeptic: PAP hides the failure of their retirement policies by passing the buck to you.

Strangers in a Strange Land
- Military Life: The Tale of the (Local) Talent [Thanks Panzer]
- Petition Online: Employ Singaporeans First! [Thanks Gilbert]

Sin City
- Singapore Dino: Al Jazeera holds debate on Singapore’s Casinos
- Global Issues: Singapore: As Casino Opens, Watch for Its Social Impact Begins
- Al Jazeera English: Singapore’s big bet [Times GMT: 12 Mar-0300hrs(+8);
13 Mar-0530,1730; 14 Mar-1130; 15 Mar-1630; 16 Mar-1430; 17 Mar-0830; 18 Mar-0630] [Thanks Gerald]

Woman No Enough
- Singapore Life and Times: Grievous Hurt
- Carpe Diem: Enough with the affairs

Lee vs Chee
- Sgpolitics.net: Sgpolitics.net salutes Tak Boleh Tahan protesters

Daily Discourse
- The Enquirer: Be careful what you wish for [Thanks Seelan]
- Zach’s Thought Blot: How Small Countries Can Take Advantage of Globalisation
- Yu-Kym’s Blog: Singapore government supports animal testing. Do you?
- My Little Corner: LTE? First Resolve the 3G problem

Selected News Stories [Thanks Gerald Ho]
- Reuters: UPDATE 2-Thai Shin Corp: Temasek has no plans to sell Shin
- Reuters: Australia on top of the world for expat kids: survey
- Reuters: Scientists find “mother” of all skin cells
- BBC: The internet billionaire rich list
- NYT Automobiles: Porsche’s Stealth Debut
- Guardian Gallery: Crufts 2010: The world’s biggest dog show
- Guardian Gallery: Walking the Great Himalayan Trail
- Denver Post: The Game: World Cup Faces [large pictures]

Bhavani Prakash from Eco WALK the Talk sent this to share a footage of an elusive local bird and promote the awareness of local biodiversity. Thanks Bhavani!

Natsumi Kamata (鎌田 奈津美 born 19 Aug 1988) is a gravure idol from Kobe, Hyogo Prefecture. She began modeling in 2006. The following year, she won the 2007 Sunday Weekly Young Grand Prix. Since then she has appeared in numerous TV dramas and several stage performances. Pictures from YS Web feature after the break. [PNSFW]