41–50 of 132 posts
I've lived in Singapore. It's actually a pretty amazing country for such small years into existence. There are some shady stuff being done in the name of profit at the expense of its population, but then again so does any country that has high taxes with mediocre added value. This person argues about foreigners - in only to become one henself. Ironyyyyy
Please tell me where in the world you shall live if you will not return to one of the best countries (as per most statistics) in the world? And this guy is American. A country which invades other countries, kills civilians and holds people locked up in Guantanamo Bay. Yes, surely that is much better. I haven't lived in Singapore but spent a bit of time there when I lived in Malaysia.
Calm the fuck down.
I just spent a few days in Singapore with some western expat friends, and their local friends, and I really love the place for what it has accomplished. If you compare it to Malaysia (a racist command economy), Indonesia (kleptocracy , until recently -- in the past few years it has gotten a lot better) and Thailand (how many coups?), and remember how few natural resources Singapore has, it is even more amazing. I agr…
I don't think it's fair to compare Singapore to its neighbours considering how it was colonized. It's better to make the comparison with Hong Kong which enjoys much more freedom (even post 1997) than Singapore.
The strangest thing is reading about how relatively poor Singapore and even Hong Kong were in the 1970s and early 1980s; it was really the opening up of China, end of the Cold War, and explosion in trade (as well as government policies in each which benefitted from these trends) which turned them into such amazing countries.
Please tell me where in the world you shall live if you will not return to one of the best countries (as per most statistics) in the world? And this guy is American. A country which invades other countries, kills civilians and holds people locked up in Guantanamo Bay. Yes, surely that is much better. I haven't lived in Singapore but spent a bit of time there when I lived in Malaysia.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
Seriously? I agree with the OP. And I've spent quite a bit of time in Singapore when I was younger.
I found it incredibly stupid. Never return to Singapore because every day students declare pride in their country ? Great. Better not spend any time in the US, UK, Australia or countless other countries. Or do people think kids are just born with an understanding of the flag, anthem etc. And citizens are forced to spend time in the military. Okay that is a bit much but hardly unprecedented. And personally I find the…
In Australia and the UK students definitely don't do this. In the UK 'patriotism' is generally seen as a pursuit of the ignorant and poor (eg, EDL, flag burning in Northern Ireland) and in Australia, while it's become more common, the same association exists (http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/society-and-culture/w...).
I've lived in Singapore. It's actually a pretty amazing country for such small years into existence. There are some shady stuff being done in the name of profit at the expense of its population, but then again so does any country that has high taxes with mediocre added value. This person argues about foreigners - in only to become one henself. Ironyyyyy
I'd say the US has more problems than Singapore... And on the topic of taxes, the tax rate in Singapore is actually much lower than in the US (based on CA; middle class).
I just spent a few days in Singapore with some western expat friends, and their local friends, and I really love the place for what it has accomplished. If you compare it to Malaysia (a racist command economy), Indonesia (kleptocracy , until recently -- in the past few years it has gotten a lot better) and Thailand (how many coups?), and remember how few natural resources Singapore has, it is even more amazing. I agr…
I don't think it's fair to compare Singapore to its neighbours considering how it was colonized. It's better to make the comparison with Hong Kong which enjoys much more freedom (even post 1997) than Singapore.
Hong Kong is stuck in it's role as a financial center, of which it's competitive advantage is getting eroded. Plus that 'competitive advantage' really boils down to knowing how to speak English and having extremely low wages for a developed economy.
On the other hand, Singapore has successfully transitioned from being a financial center to the technological capital of East Asia. Something that the Hong Kong government desperately wants to do, but continues to fail at. And I am not even going to go into the current political storm.
Hong Kong is probably the more interesting city (I'm biased of course, having lived there for years and consider it my home away from home away from home) but out of the HK-Singapore rivalry, I think Singapore has the upper hand.
/rant
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I don't think it's fair to compare Singapore to its neighbours considering how it was colonized. It's better to make the comparison with Hong Kong which enjoys much more freedom (even post 1997) than Singapore.
If you make that comparison, I would say Singapore has been a much more successful economy. Hong Kong is stuck in it's role as a financial center, of which it's competitive advantage is getting eroded. Plus that 'competitive advantage' really boils down to knowing how to speak English and having extremely low wages for a developed economy. On the other hand, Singapore has successfully transitioned from being a financ…
Earlier quoted context omitted.
I'd say the US has more problems than Singapore... And on the topic of taxes, the tax rate in Singapore is actually much lower than in the US (based on CA; middle class).
why BMWs are on average 4 times more expensive in Singapour than US? Low taxes at work? Need to use public transportation because cars ownership is taxed to hell and back? How came person using bus and not owning a car is considered to have better standard of living?