Category Archives: Rants & Raves
Debunking the deification of Lee Kuan Yew’s legacy
There has been a great deal of debate about whether Lee Kuan Yew single-handedly transformed Singapore from a fishing village into a first-world country and plenty of postulations that without him, Singapore will not be where it is today. Without going into historical details (because history is like a bad case of Rashomon on an… Read More »
Hard truths for weak souls
So did Lee Kuan Yew single-handedly shaped Singapore and transformed it from fishing village to sprawling metropolis? Watch this video of Singapore in 1957 and judge for yourself if the fishing village miracle is revisionist history at its best. Related stories: Blind gratitude is not gratitude The Intolerance of Grief What LKY’s death tells us… Read More »
You’re running ministries, not the military
Lee Hsien Loong’s thinking in managing his team of ministers is, sadly, a reflection of his military background. “Negligent or dishonest ministers will be sacked but ministers who do not perform well despite their best efforts will be moved to a less demanding portfolio, or, if necessary, phased out discreetly,” he said. But he added… Read More »
Disgruntled? Complain!
Saw this little snippet in the 12 Sep edition of Sky Post. I think it applies to Singaporeans as well. “香港人没有太多机会面对大型灾难,小事不满便立即投诉。相反日本人面对灾难时的安然和自律很值得大家学习。”~ 香港前天文台台长林超英为《日本.再出发–在日港人311地震后感》撰写书序 Related stuff:No, you listen to me first!How to protest effectively
危机=商机?
Many foreign businessmen and commentators have observed that the word for crisis in Chinese consists of the characters for danger (危) as well as opportunity (机). Their point is that, unlike pessimistic Westerners, the Chinese sees crises as opportunities for improvement. However, the etymology of 危机 does not support this popular wisdom. In most context,… Read More »