Need to wise up quickly to the ways of the world
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“WE SAT through a talk yesterday on land investment in Birmingham and was shocked when my friend immediately ploughed in S$25,000 (RM60,000) to buy a 1,076 sq ft parcel,” an Internet surfer recently wrote.
“It had no planning permit and might take seven years to get one,” he added.
Yet she took the plunge. Why?
“She was enticed by the gifts – a S$600 (RM1,440) camera, S$100 (RM240) in shopping and S$50 (RM120) in dining vouchers and two bottles of wine,” the writer explained.
He was commenting on the government’s search for people with special qualities for posting in China.
“They’ll be hard to find since 90% of Singaporeans – and 100% of civil servants – don’t have them; they are very naive, easy to be eaten alive unknowingly,” he concluded.
I had long wondered before this case what ingredients were needed to pull off a successful scam.
When I was a news editor in Hong Kong, I put this question to a retired head of a cheating syndicate called Tin Sin Kuk, which had existed among the Chinese for ages.
The ring consisted of five or six men and women, who would select a victim – always a rich person – to take part in “swindling” another person, who was actually a gang member.
Needless to say, the rich person himself was the target.
Sitting in my Causeway Bay flat, the old man said: “For the cheating to succeed, the victim must have greed in his heart, the greater the better,” he said. “If he’s honest and not greedy, we cannot swindle him.”
A little naivete helps, of course. High education is no safeguard, he added.
Are Singaporeans too simple-minded – or greedy – to be able to survive unscathed in this era of sophisticated scams and financial sharks?
Protected by a system of laws and a stable environment, they become vulnerable when exposed to sophisticated swindlers and Madoff-type con men.
The old magic stone tricks have made way for modern online frauds, credit card cheats and money schemes in which black and white are not always distinguishable.
“The average Singaporean is honest and law-abiding, and tends to think the world spins like that,” said a retired manager. “If a well-dressed Westerner spins an investment plan, he’ll likely lap it up.”
As children, Singaporeans are over-protected by parents; and as adults, by strict laws.
“I know of 12-year-old students who are not allowed to take a bus by themselves.”
When he was commenting on reports of Singaporean businessmen being cheated in China at the time of its opening up, university researcher Wang Shouqing had said: “The Singapore company is good in a very mature environment, but not good in emerging markets.”
His implication was that Singaporeans were too sheltered to be able to deal with the less scrupulous world outside. Many tend to take people’s words too much at face value.
Erik Wang, Singapore’s Consul-General in Shanghai, was quoted as saying that there was a simple lesson for Singaporeans investing in China: “Know how to cheat others more than they cheat you.”
Sharing the sentiments was controversial Taiwanese legislator Li Ao, who commented on TV several years ago that Singaporeans were stupid because they came from “poor genes”.
He ranked them lower in natural intelligence (despite their high education) than the people of Taiwan and Hong Kong.
“Taiwanese are scoundrels, but lovable, Hong Kong people are craftier, (Chinese mainlanders are unfathomable) and Singaporeans are stupider,” he said, adding that it was partially due to genetics.
One Singaporean reacted: “Some Singa-poreans can be very simplistic, because we have grown up in an engineered environment."
“The average Singaporean is good at academic studies and works hard, but falls short on individual initiative and street-wise qualities, relying too much on the government for help.”
As affluent Singapore opens its doors wider to foreigners, it will likely attract the wrong type of people to come and work their schemes here.
In recent years, cheating has been on the rise. Many originate from half a world away – through the Internet.
This column has also reported on numerous cases of retirees being cheated of their savings by pretty, sweet-talking Chinese women.
A recent headline said that on average at least one Singaporean falls prey to lottery scam fraudsters every day, and this remains a concern to the police.
Con men sell dreams and fakes ranging from college degrees to job contracts. They organise online “auctions” and make off with people’s money.
The most prevalent are lottery scams, which is a worldwide scourge. In a seven-month period there were 210 Singapore victims, cheated of S$2mil (RM4.8mil).
The amount is, of course, a far cry from the US$50bil (RM175bil) that Bernard Madoff cheated Americans of, including some of the most savvy investors. Such is the sophistication of this criminal art.
Singapore has its own investment scandal, albeit on a much smaller scale as a whiplash of America’s financial crisis.
An activist for clean governance Tan Kin Lian explained on his blog that it began in 2006 when US investment banks were saddled with mortgages and corporate debts that were turning bad.
“They had to get rid of these assets.”
They looked for countries with weak protection of consumers which were convinced about the merits of using “the light touch” to regulate the financial sector and encourage financial innovation.
“They found Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan,” said Tan.
As a result, some 10,000 Singaporeans, many of them retirees, lost S$500mil (RM1.2bil) of their savings to what they were led to believe was a “safe investment”.
So far, only a fraction of the money has been recovered.
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Last time, my Taiwan Uncle, Ao Li already said, "Singaporean are stupid" no one believe him. Now you see lah..He also told me that I am stupid to become a Singaporean, but I am not that stupid lor, because I heeled his advises whereas many Singaporeans throwed rubbish at him.
So Dear Singaporeans, learn to take critics as positive feedback ya, and when someone from another perspective said something bad about you, dun take it to heart, study it and learn to be smart. The more kiasu you are, the more you tend to suuuu...until pant drop.
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Originally posted by 4sg:
Sharing the sentiments was controversial Taiwanese legislator Li Ao, who commented on TV several years ago that Singaporeans were stupid because they came from “poor genes”.
He ranked them lower in natural intelligence (despite their high education) than the people of Taiwan and Hong Kong.
“Taiwanese are scoundrels, but lovable, Hong Kong people are craftier, (Chinese mainlanders are unfathomable) and Singaporeans are stupider,” he said, adding that it was partially due to genetics.
One Singaporean reacted: “Some Singa-poreans can be very simplistic, because we have grown up in an engineered environment."
“The average Singaporean is good at academic studies and works hard, but falls short on individual initiative and street-wise qualities, relying too much on the government for help.”
Li Ao is also quite stupid himself.
The reason why Singapore are morons is because of repressive rule and the mass brainwashing by state media.
You see, the old senile bastard fears a cunning and crafty people.
How to suck blood from cunning people?
You have to turn the entire Singapore society into a society of brainwashed fools to drain their blood.
This is what the old bastard has done.
Now you know why old bastard can stay in power for 50 years, why lee family controls everything, why ho ching still CEO of Temasek after losing billions.
This Li Ao, also a stupid bastard.
“Taiwanese are scoundrels, but lovable, Hong Kong people are craftier, (Chinese mainlanders are unfathomable) and Singaporeans are stupider,” he said, adding that it was partially due to genetics.
Lazy to think then say lah, what genetics. Singapore and taiwan all also hokkien wah.
Lazy to come up with reason then just come up with bullshit like "due to genetics".
Shame on you Li Ao. Fucking bastard.
“The average Singaporean is good at academic studies and works hard, but falls short on individual initiative and street-wise qualities, relying too much on the government for help.”
That is designed by the old bastard. depend on government so won't rebel. What due to genetics? That is such a lame reason.
Fuck you Li Ao.
Fuck you.
Fuck you old bastard for dumbing down Singaporeans to secure your fucking rule.
Fuck you.
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Regardless, we have to wise-up to the way of the world quickly.
When I did my post-graduate studies with a class of 5 Singaporeans and 25 foreigners/PRs, I soon realized the foreigners/PRs (forget about the part of being smart for a while) can be so cunning, scheming and downright bullying.
The Singaporeans are not anywhere at that level of thinking. Haiz..... -
Originally posted by 4sg:
The Singaporeans are not anywhere at that level of thinking. Haiz.....But the old bastard feels more secure with this type of simple minded morons like us.
If you want to rule over a people, which type you prefer, the 5 Singaporeans or 25 foreign aliens and PR?
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Need to wise up quickly to the ways of the world
Government must be overthrown, everything will be resolved once that happens.
They are the ones who created this brainwashed society.
They are the ones who stifled the people.
They are the ones who killed off the intellectual life, killed off political life, killed off cultural life, imported foreign aliens to come and demoralise us.
The fucking PAP must be overthrown.
I don't want my children to grow up into brainwashed morons for PAP to suck blood.
One Singaporean reacted: “Some Singa-poreans can be very simplistic, because we have grown up in an engineered environment."
Who engineered it?
The old bastard engineered it.
look at his scheming bastard bin!
One look I know con man.
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Originally posted by angel3070:
Need to wise up quickly to the ways of the world
Government must be overthrown, everything will be resolved once that happens.
They are the ones who created this brainwashed society.
They are the ones who stifled the people.
They are the ones who killed off the intellectual life, killed off political life, killed off cultural life, imported foreign aliens to come and demoralise us.
The fucking PAP must be overthrown.
I don't want my children to grow up into brainwashed morons for PAP to suck blood.
Who engineered it?
The old bastard engineered it.
look at his scheming bastard bin!
One look I know con man.
I go burnt papers for the 7th month ghost festival first ya... -
That old man is nothing and will soon enough be completely nothing. A complete nothing.
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not only an old man, so is an old woman, so are all of us...so dun be so selfish to think of only old man got nothing, at the end of the day, we are all nothing. Dust to dust, Ashes to Ashes, Amen n Awoman
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Originally posted by angel3070:
Need to wise up quickly to the ways of the world
Government must be overthrown, everything will be resolved once that happens.
They are the ones who created this brainwashed society.
They are the ones who stifled the people.
They are the ones who killed off the intellectual life, killed off political life, killed off cultural life, imported foreign aliens to come and demoralise us.
The fucking PAP must be overthrown.
I don't want my children to grow up into brainwashed morons for PAP to suck blood.
Who engineered it?
The old bastard engineered it.
look at his scheming bastard bin!
One look I know con man.
I, for one, do not advocate the over-throwing of the PAP. We have to give the current government credit when credit is due. We need to acknowledge the good that PAP have done to the country thus far.
But time has changed. The top-down approach of governing this country is now unworkable. As you pointed out, people of this generation need to take initiative and control of their lives, so that our country and our people can prosper in a sea of change and in an era of uncertainties but rapid global power shift.
We need to have a govt that is more accountable, being able to come up with best solution to a problem - faster. The only way achieve this is to have robust, thorough, open and no-hold-barred debates in parliament. A single party in parliament will never be able to achieve the breath and the scale in debate that can meet the current and the future parliamentary requirement.I hope to see the evolving of bi-partisan political parties in parliament. But we should not trade freedom for anarchy.
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The other way that the opposition can consider is to join PAP, create internal moles, not that if you cannot beat them, join them theory, but to put in more peoples into PAP, and from there change the party inside out, try not to follow those 1963 stupid uncles style where they set up their own socialis Barisan, have patient, do the coup de grace when time is up..
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Originally posted by angel7030:
The other way that the opposition can consider is to join PAP, create internal moles, not that if you cannot beat them, join them theory, but to put in more peoples into PAP, and from there change the party inside out, try not to follow those 1963 stupid uncles style where they set up their own socialis Barisan, have patient, do the coup de grace when time is up..
have you been reading comic books recently?
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Originally posted by 4sg:
have you been reading comic books recently?
ya, young LKY comic books -
Originally posted by angel7030:
ya, young LKY comic booksdun everynite read too much ... wait you become like taro aso.....read too much comic, talk no one understand - voted out.....
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Originally posted by 4sg:
I, for one, do not advocate the over-throwing of the PAP. We have to give the current government credit when credit is due. We need to acknowledge the good that PAP have done to the country thus far.
But time has changed. The top-down approach of governing this country is now unworkable. As you pointed out, people of this generation need to take initiative and control of their lives, so that our country and our people can prosper in a sea of change and in an era of uncertain but rapid global power shift.
We need to have a govt that is more accountable, being able to come up with best solution to a problem - faster. The only way achieve this is to have robust, thorough, open and no-hold-barred debates in parliament. A single party in parliament will never be able to achieve the breath and the scale in debate that can meet the current and the future parliamentary requirement.I hope to see the evolving of bi-partisan political parties in parliament. But we should not trade freedom for anarchy.
I do not know whether bi-partisan politics may be applicable as there can be more than 2 parties coming together to come up with the solution to the problems. But yes, I agree, there got to be better leaders than anarchists.
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Originally posted by 4sg:
“WE SAT through a talk yesterday on land investment in Birmingham and was shocked when my friend immediately ploughed in S$25,000 (RM60,000) to buy a 1,076 sq ft parcel,” an Internet surfer recently wrote.
“It had no planning permit and might take seven years to get one,” he added.
Yet she took the plunge. Why?
“She was enticed by the gifts – a S$600 (RM1,440) camera, S$100 (RM240) in shopping and S$50 (RM120) in dining vouchers and two bottles of wine,” the writer explained.
He was commenting on the government’s search for people with special qualities for posting in China.
“They’ll be hard to find since 90% of Singaporeans – and 100% of civil servants – don’t have them; they are very naive, easy to be eaten alive unknowingly,” he concluded.
I had long wondered before this case what ingredients were needed to pull off a successful scam.
When I was a news editor in Hong Kong, I put this question to a retired head of a cheating syndicate called Tin Sin Kuk, which had existed among the Chinese for ages.
The ring consisted of five or six men and women, who would select a victim – always a rich person – to take part in “swindling” another person, who was actually a gang member.
Needless to say, the rich person himself was the target.
Sitting in my Causeway Bay flat, the old man said: “For the cheating to succeed, the victim must have greed in his heart, the greater the better,” he said. “If he’s honest and not greedy, we cannot swindle him.”
A little naivete helps, of course. High education is no safeguard, he added.
Are Singaporeans too simple-minded – or greedy – to be able to survive unscathed in this era of sophisticated scams and financial sharks?
Protected by a system of laws and a stable environment, they become vulnerable when exposed to sophisticated swindlers and Madoff-type con men.
The old magic stone tricks have made way for modern online frauds, credit card cheats and money schemes in which black and white are not always distinguishable.
“The average Singaporean is honest and law-abiding, and tends to think the world spins like that,” said a retired manager. “If a well-dressed Westerner spins an investment plan, he’ll likely lap it up.”
As children, Singaporeans are over-protected by parents; and as adults, by strict laws.
“I know of 12-year-old students who are not allowed to take a bus by themselves.”
When he was commenting on reports of Singaporean businessmen being cheated in China at the time of its opening up, university researcher Wang Shouqing had said: “The Singapore company is good in a very mature environment, but not good in emerging markets.”
His implication was that Singaporeans were too sheltered to be able to deal with the less scrupulous world outside. Many tend to take people’s words too much at face value.
Erik Wang, Singapore’s Consul-General in Shanghai, was quoted as saying that there was a simple lesson for Singaporeans investing in China: “Know how to cheat others more than they cheat you.”
Sharing the sentiments was controversial Taiwanese legislator Li Ao, who commented on TV several years ago that Singaporeans were stupid because they came from “poor genes”.
He ranked them lower in natural intelligence (despite their high education) than the people of Taiwan and Hong Kong.
“Taiwanese are scoundrels, but lovable, Hong Kong people are craftier, (Chinese mainlanders are unfathomable) and Singaporeans are stupider,” he said, adding that it was partially due to genetics.
One Singaporean reacted: “Some Singa-poreans can be very simplistic, because we have grown up in an engineered environment."
“The average Singaporean is good at academic studies and works hard, but falls short on individual initiative and street-wise qualities, relying too much on the government for help.”
As affluent Singapore opens its doors wider to foreigners, it will likely attract the wrong type of people to come and work their schemes here.
In recent years, cheating has been on the rise. Many originate from half a world away – through the Internet.
This column has also reported on numerous cases of retirees being cheated of their savings by pretty, sweet-talking Chinese women.
A recent headline said that on average at least one Singaporean falls prey to lottery scam fraudsters every day, and this remains a concern to the police.
Con men sell dreams and fakes ranging from college degrees to job contracts. They organise online “auctions” and make off with people’s money.
The most prevalent are lottery scams, which is a worldwide scourge. In a seven-month period there were 210 Singapore victims, cheated of S$2mil (RM4.8mil).
The amount is, of course, a far cry from the US$50bil (RM175bil) that Bernard Madoff cheated Americans of, including some of the most savvy investors. Such is the sophistication of this criminal art.
Singapore has its own investment scandal, albeit on a much smaller scale as a whiplash of America’s financial crisis.
An activist for clean governance Tan Kin Lian explained on his blog that it began in 2006 when US investment banks were saddled with mortgages and corporate debts that were turning bad.
“They had to get rid of these assets.”
They looked for countries with weak protection of consumers which were convinced about the merits of using “the light touch” to regulate the financial sector and encourage financial innovation.
“They found Hong Kong, Singapore and Taiwan,” said Tan.
As a result, some 10,000 Singaporeans, many of them retirees, lost S$500mil (RM1.2bil) of their savings to what they were led to believe was a “safe investment”.
So far, only a fraction of the money has been recovered.
Singaporeans are not stupid. We are all just decent people, and would rather think well of others than to think ill of anyone. We are cultivated people, at least the majority of us, after years of peace and prosperity amidst a turbulent world compared to others.
Even our worst con men cannot be compared to the class of Taiwanese scoundrels and crafty Hongkies.
Because of our upbringing since young. We all swore and pledge allegience daily to our society - made of your family, relativies and friends and mine. It rubs in and is ingrain in us, to treat our fellow citizens better, unlike the riff-raff dregs of humanity from other foriegn lands.
But globalizing had made us all reach out to the world, and carrying such honour bonds to treat non Singaporeans is a disaster to ourselves, thus the many cases of being cheated.
I too, had been cheated before in foreign investments. I blame no one but myself, for being too trusting. But I realize what was lost was only money, not my honour and oath I had pledge, not only to my society, but to uphold it in my dealings with others of my race - human, for our pledge is an idealism beyond nationalities.
Money, afterall, can always be made back over time. But reputations, once ruined, very seldom are given reprieves. There is always divine retributions anyway.
So really, there is no need to change ourselves, for to change, would be to lower ourselves to the level of scoundrels and crafty knaves the Taiwanese and Hongkies truly are.
We Singaporeans have a vision and a goal in mind ingrained deeply within us, and that is to build a better society than the one before. Hong Kong and Taiwan are not our model of an ideal society. No country is, I believe, for we are still evolving, as a nation, and if peace and prosperity is still within our grasp, it may be a nation that continues to be beyond the expectations of many, just as we are held in awe by other nations today.
Such visions will be a reality, but only if our young are fully nurtured, and some of them will willingly step forward selflessly, to serve our society, to take us all to the next level, by building upon existing foundations within a peaceful and rational environment, than in an acrimonious dead-locked one.
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Originally posted by angel7030:
The other way that the opposition can consider is to join PAP, create internal moles, not that if you cannot beat them, join them theory, but to put in more peoples into PAP, and from there change the party inside out, try not to follow those 1963 stupid uncles style where they set up their own socialis Barisan, have patient, do the coup de grace when time is up..
If only Chee Soon Juan have joined the PAP and not the SDP.
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Originally posted by angel7030:
try not to follow those 1963 stupid uncles style where they set up their own socialis Barisan
But Barisan Socialis was stronger than PAP. That's why no choice have to instigate mass arrest to destroy it.
PAP strong can defeat BS, still need to mass arrest?
The final split came just few days later in the Legislative Assembly. Thirteen Left Wing PAP Assemblymen abstained from voting with the party line. They were dismissed from the PAP. In August 1961, they formed a rival party, the Barisan Sosialis, led by Dr Lee Siew Choh and Lim Chin Siong. They took 35 branch committees, 19 of the 23 organizing secretaries and an estimated 80 percent of the membership. PAP under LKY was a mere shell, according to Dr Lee. Both Dr Goh Keng Swee and Lee Kuan Yew were devastated and thought that it is the end of the PAP. But on man never gave up the fight as Dr Goh recalled the following conversation with Toh Chin Chye:
Toh: Why are you staring at the ceiling?
Goh: Do sit down, Chin Chye, we are all busted; the party secretaries, the PA (People’s Association), the organizing secretaries, the Work Brigade. I know the communists were organizationally much stronger than us. But I didn’t expect us smashed up like this in just a week.
Toh: I just come from Harry’s office. He was staring at the ceiling just like you did. You should snap out of this mood. The fighting has just begun. It is going to be long and nasty. But if we keep wringing our hands in anguish we are sure to lose. We should start thinking immediately of our next moves – how to rebuild the Party, rally the loyal Party members and how to carry the fight into the enemy camp.http://singaporegovt.blogspot.com/2006/02/part-ii-true-founders-of-singapore-man.html
B.S was the stronger party with a mass following that is why they must be destroyed.
PAP don't have mass following, so easier to control.
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Originally posted by angel3070:
But Barisan Socialis was stronger than PAP. That's why no choice have to instigate mass arrest to destroy it.
PAP strong can defeat BS, still need to mass arrest?
B.S was the stronger party with a mass following that is why they must be destroyed.
PAP don't have mass following, so easier to control.
So it seems like Toh Chin Chye was the mastermind, the master swordmaker or the kingmaker afterall. Secret vote in favour of LKY, rallied the remaining members to rebuild the party etc.
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Originally posted by angel7030:
Last time, my Taiwan Uncle, Ao Li already said, "Singaporean are stupid" no one believe him. Now you see lah..He also told me that I am stupid to become a Singaporean, but I am not that stupid lor, because I heeled his advises whereas many Singaporeans throwed rubbish at him.
So Dear Singaporeans, learn to take critics as positive feedback ya, and when someone from another perspective said something bad about you, dun take it to heart, study it and learn to be smart. The more kiasu you are, the more you tend to suuuu...until pant drop.
Singaporeans are not stupid. Only you are the stupid 1 to want to become a singaporean -
I don't think Mr Seah's intention is not to label Singaporean as stupid. His real intention is to warn us of the complex, disorganised wider world out there, which many homegrown Singaporeans are not aware of or never experience before.
It is never about Li Ao's comment. I am sorry if it brings back memory. Let's drop Li Ao's and go back to the main topic - if we can. -
no man is an island
we need to trust others to do the work but often got cheated and branded as stupid
tats why japanese flock together wen doing business
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hey angel7030!
your uncle is wrong!sporeans are nice kind obliging people.its your uncle from taiwan who is stupid and not well educated.just because we dont eat a lobster on a plate while its still screaming away and be nasty and unkind to every human dont mean we are not like you.
singaporeans asawhole arerather much likethe japanese at times if your uncle did study them carefully and categorised all of them.
however its not wise of u to become a sporean when u couldbe a spore pr in the past.sporeansaretrying ways to make gov try to side them more by not ass kissing on every message board.wat u aredoin is trying to add more rubbish on an already mile high rubbish pile.........wat u would end up would be a bigger rubbish pile near you n chancesarethat u will end up as a victim of the rubbish pile u helped make many decades ago.
u should just leave the rubbish pile as it is or lower the height of that rubbish pile.ishould say what u aredoin is sprinkling beads of gold and shiny sparkling dust on thst pile....which isntreally much appreciated on both sides.
PLEASE WISE UP.
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HEYangel7030,
your internal mole theory was checked by pap 8 yearsago or more.thespore gov normally get rid of people likethat.they can smell internal moles intheir midst instantly.they have their own methods of making decisions.isnt much differentfrom the nazi system at times.
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Originally posted by HITMAN11111111111:
hey angel7030!
your uncle is wrong!sporeans are nice kind obliging people.its your uncle from taiwan who is stupid and not well educated.just because we dont eat a lobster on a plate while its still screaming away and be nasty and unkind to every human dont mean we are not like you.
singaporeans asawhole arerather much likethe japanese at times if your uncle did study them carefully and categorised all of them.
however its not wise of u to become a sporean when u couldbe a spore pr in the past.sporeansaretrying ways to make gov try to side them more by not ass kissing on every message board.wat u aredoin is trying to add more rubbish on an already mile high rubbish pile.........wat u would end up would be a bigger rubbish pile near you n chancesarethat u will end up as a victim of the rubbish pile u helped make many decades ago.
u should just leave the rubbish pile as it is or lower the height of that rubbish pile.ishould say what u aredoin is sprinkling beads of gold and shiny sparkling dust on thst pile....which isntreally much appreciated on both sides.
PLEASE WISE UP.
Wise??? why be Wise, Wise men die first hor. The most smart peoples in this world are not those showing and booasting their wise smart alec brainy, it is those who can act and act blur blur too, kind of like me. I know what you peoples are thinking, but i just act blur blur hor, if not how to chop you. Same goes to PRC gal cheating old sg uncle theory, Sg old Uncles keep saying PRC gals are stupid and easy to get, tho the PRC are smart, but they acted innocent and blur blur...and then when time is ripe, they chop..and at the end of the day, when Old uncles goldmine is empty, Uncles then know who is smarter.The ironic is some old fools in my native taiwan can said in the public that Singapore poeples are stupid but Singapore all diam diam, only knows how to shout at forums and kopitiams. So who is stupid?