The sky has finally fallen...

Discussion in 'Chit-Chat' started by ctjcad, Mar 22, 2010.

  1. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    There are two issues here. First, the government makes its own laws and rules and is also the sole "Banker" in CPF instead of merely legislating the laws and rules but leaving to the private sector like banks and insurance companies to administer CPF funds. It is thus a monopolistic "money collector" bound on by its own rules and laws it can set, change and interpret as it sees fit.
    Second, if a contributor leaves the country for good he is morally entitled to get his "money" back. Should he come back later for another job with or with another employer it is a different contract with all the required immigration laws that have to be complied with. This is more of a human and moral entitlement.

    It my surprise you that Hong Kong has recently been voted the best city in the world to live in, ahead of Amsterdam, Osaka, Sydney, and Toronto, using an award winning voting system that looks more at "spatial characteristics". Incidentally, here the government legislates laws on CPF but it plays no role in collecting any CPF contributions.
     
  2. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    That is only your 'moral' opinion, but each country has its own laws to cater to the various needs of its people. And the law applies to everyone without discrimination.

    We have to accept the fact that no two countries are alike.

    If the law needs to be changed, then it is up to the people, the government and the legislature to do so. As far as Singapore is concerned, there is no urgency from the people to overhaul the CPF laws and practices. The CPF has served its purposes reasonably well thus far and from time to time, minor changes have been made to cater to certain personal needs. But the changes apply to all CPF holders.

    It doesn't surprise me at all that every country, including SAR Hong Kong, is trying to be the best it can be and be recognised by the world and it is a good thing for it pushes the bar higher and higher. But not all countries or cities have the resources, talent or political will-power to do so. And herein lies the disparity among nations.
     
  3. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    The escalating Libor scandal shows how corrupt and sick the western banking system and their regulators are. This is an extremely serious scandal and reveals how so called western economies and banking systems cheat all the time, with the collaboration from their so called impeccable regulators.
    Now that the scandal has revealed more dirty secrets, the US government is preparing to file criminal charges against all these big western banks and slap them with US$22 billion fines or more. This has triggered other countries to do the same and could wipe off all the western banks in one mighty swoop.
    But, just like the Libor scandal and the Quantity Easing tool kit the US uses to fool the world, all these western banks will survive despite such scandals because without them the west's economy will crash in one foul stroke.
    Now imagine if the developing countries were the originators of the "Libor" fiasco, it will be "Kaput" for them and the West will ensure it will be "Kaput" and nothing else. You see the double standard?
    A recent classic example of this unfair state of affairs is the Korea case during the 1990s crash and today's Greece. The Libor case is even more serious as it strikes at the credibility of the western economic mode, which is built on castles of sand.
     
  4. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    I watched a TV interview by CNA with the famous Steve Forbes recently and he appaently said that the democractic system is the best and it is the government's interference with the system that has caused so much instability in the financial and economic sectors.

    I wonder how far this is true with recent adverse events taking place in Europe and now the UK on LIBOR rate fixing. These are so-called democratic systems in the main.
     
  5. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    Of course Steve Forbes will always show his true color. Why wouldn't he? After all, the US had the highest inequality between the top 1% of the population to the remaining 99% before the financial crisis among the industrialized countries in the world. Post crisis, it has gotten even worse. Now the top 1% owns more than the remaining 99% of all financial assets, an all time high, triggering the "Ocuppy Wall St" movement.
    This is what Forbes wants as he has gotten richer after the crisis. Whenever any thing bad happens it is always the blame game, like government interference.

    Viewed from a future perspective, do you all realize that both the US and Europe are scared like hell of China?

    They are not bothered about a rising India, Brazil, Russia, etc because both US and Europe know they will never be good enough to rise to the challenge.
    The Chinese were both economic and technology leaders for more centuries than the west, until the last 200 years. Now their progress is staggering with its speed and benefits.
    The Chinese have now a new business model uniquely Chinese that is taught in business schools that will be the drivers of future global economies. Coupled this with their fast adaptation of current western business models, this is a serious threat to the "1% owning more financial assets than the remaining 99%" business model of the US.
    It is what the Chinese called "Socialism with Chinese characteristics" with Japanese model of wealth distribution, a powerful business sector to be given full authority and responsibility to produce wealth, and a strong central government.

    The west's fear is this new Chinese model that will eventually replace the western model. There is nothing the west can do about it. The smart thing is to adapt and be part of the change.
    Already China is like opium to the west. They need China for any meaningful growth in their economy. Now it isl like when China coughs the west gets a chill. See no further than Australia. It is now 100% on Chinese "opium" with only one sector (mining) prospering, powering an Australian woman to become the world's riches woman, but other sectors are going bankrupt.

    The US has in its doorsteps evidence of Chinese prowess. Look no further than the Ivy League colleges and the patents filed in the last 3 years. Do you see a Chinese invasion?
     
  6. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    US lawmakers are up in arms about the US Olympic Committee's decision to award Ralph Lauren to design and source supplies of the US Olympic Team's uniform, after finding out the uniforms had a 'made -in-china' label. They want the uniforms to be made in the US instead of outsourcing them.
    Now, let us see what happens if the lawmakers have their way.
    They will probably have to pay penalties, award the contract to a US manufacturer, and will definitely end up like the fiasco of the UK private security company in the UK to provide security for the coming London Olympics. I will bet with anyone that no new uniforms will be made in the US and the US athletes will end up either with nothing to wear or with the same 'made-in-china' uniforms but with a fake 'made-in-us' label'. This way both sides can claim victory!
     
  7. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    I'm not as sure as you are that China is succeeding in replacing Western business models and inventions. She adopted western capitalism to spearhead it's drive to prosperity. While she has succeeded in some some ways largely because of low cost, often cited as unfair competition by the West, including her undervalued currency, China is now experiencing unequal growth between it's prosperous coastal regions and the more suburban central and western regions.
     
  8. OneToughBirdie

    OneToughBirdie Regular Member

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    My friend, I have sinned many times, pastorship I pass...Taneepak post #510 'But strict controls in religious bodies are difficult to carry out because of the stigma of fear of being accused of a lack of Godly trust' is correct and I agree.
    There is a church here that in the annual financial report stated it collected $8.3M and spent $6.7M in staff salaries, giving $350K to fund foreigh churches to spread the gospel. That is 80% for salaries alone. With a large of group of the 'workers' are volunteers, how much are the governor and head pastor make?
    Many times during sermons, the governor and the head pastor would make a pitch that the church had given $10k to a church in Ukraine, $30K for missions, and so on, and during the last recession, where offerings were down, the governor stood on the podium and ask the congregation to pitch in more, otherwise they have to laid of staff and cut back on foreign projects. Guess what, the funds are topped up again. Why don't the governor emphasize that salaries consume 80% of the funds?
    I brought this 'report' up during our group meetings, it raised eyebrows among my friends who do not read the report. Many were upset seeing the huge disparity between staff cost and other expenses. Two of our friends, one is a rich business owner and the other is a malaysian who is a devote christian said, they gave to the church and if the leaders mispent them, they can answer to god. Such is faith.
    The bible says believe in christ and you can have an eternal life, in the bible it says to offer tithe (i.e. a tenth part of one's annual income contributed voluntarily, i.e. gross annual income'), so the church collects the tithes, and it continues....
    So there you go, if you have strong faith and pay your tithe, you book a ticket to heaven after your time on earth is done...it is one big business....amen.
     
  9. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    A friend sent me a youtube video of one pastor Benny Hinn who travels in private jet, stays in presidential suites, lives in a big mansion and spends money on branded goods for himself and his family.

    That is luxurious living, fit for a king!

    No wonder 80% of the church funds go to salaries and related costs.
     
  10. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    That opinion is from the west's view. All western predictions and analysis about China have been wrong: from the certain collapse of China after the June 4, 1984 Tianaman incident to the overthrow of the government from its rising internet "chatter-box" Arab Spring unraveling of the country. Instead these western self-appointed soothsayers have eggs thrown on their faces.
    Maybe, a little peep into the China paradox here will ensure that anyone schooled in only western values will not make fools of themselves time and time again, can be useful: www.nytimes.com/2011/07/19/opinion/19iht-edli19.html.
    Another thing the west misleads the world is about China's undervalued currency, unfair trade practices, etc. These are nonsense, if you are consider what the west and in particular the US have done.
    The US has bailed out banks and auto companies with amounts so huge that these enterprises can afford to sell their services and cars at zero values but did not. Such is the size of the bailouts that so called undervalued currencies are puny in comparison.
    Of course I am not against such huge bailouts and in the same vein any so called undervalued currencies if I am the importing country! I would regard these as helping me, my family and my country with affordable goods and services so that I can focus on other sectors that I have a comparative advantage. Only losers and American politicians with ulterior motives complain of such goodies as unfair competition. Even then these politicians buy all such so called "cheap" goods/services.
    What the west should appreciate is that the Chinese are genetically smarter and have genes that predispose them to higher life expectancy. These combinations frighten the wits out of them. The west's greatest disadvantage is their inability to follow the Chinese mind, and hence its not unjustified phobia about the threat of China.
     
  11. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    http://cpds.apana.org.au/Teams/Articles/china_as_economic_engine.htm

    This link provides some interesting views on the Chinese model versus it's Western counterparts especially.

    China has been trying to catch up with the US all these years but not quite reached there yet. If China possesses superior genes and talents it would not have taken so long and is still struggling to achieve balanced growth with a largely centrally controlled system in almost every sector.
     
  12. ctjcad

    ctjcad Regular Member

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    hey mr. t & uncle Loh, we all know both CHN (east) and the U.S. (western world) have to rely on each other to keep each economy going. Nothing surprising, we need the producers and the consumers. Perhaps it's meant to be, to have CHN & its more than 1 billion people producing most of the world's goods (and raking in the money) to keep their economy alive and to have U.S. (and the western world) consume and enjoy all of the CHN's "cheap" (some even say crap) goods.
    Imagine also what would happen if CHN all of a sudden goes the full-democracy mode with its more than 1.2 bil people (that's roughly 4x the size of U.S.)?..:eek:
    1 thing the CHN people and culture can teach the U.S. & western world is how to save and be smart with one's money..
     
  13. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    I think articles on China from western writers or experts should be suspect as they know very little about China, its people, and its culture. So far almost every dire prediction they have come out with have been wrong. Although Australia is closer to China than other western countries, its ignorance of China and all things Chinese is quite obvious.
    China a country of shoddy goods? Not so come 2013, www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-12885271, the year China will surpass the US in science.
    China a slow starter, are you joking? No less than the IMF is predicting that China will surpass the US economy in 2016, www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13...predicts-year-Chinas-economy-surpass-us.html/
     
  14. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    The corrected second website referred to should be www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13...-predicts-year-Chinas-economy-surpass-us.html.
     
  15. ctjcad

    ctjcad Regular Member

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    ..and the part about "Quality questions" in that article ?...aaahhh..
     
  16. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    There are two powerful forces at work that propel China at such breakneck speed.
    One is that it is China's national policy to focus and develop science and technology. Two, unlike many other countries, China also promotes freedom FROM religion besides freedom of religion. You see the difference here? One and two combined form a powerful synergy, as one needs to free the mind to pursue the other.
     
  17. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    Well one day CHN may learn to be as smart as the US by printing more money to buy up all the nice, but not crappy, goods of the world and become BIG spenders for a change instead of big producers...hahaha.

    That may take some time for the world to accept the yuan as hard currency, unlike the US dollar which even HKG still looks up to to peg it's own currency.
     
  18. Loh

    Loh Regular Member

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    Maybe it should be reminded that today's world is vastly different from yesteryears.


    With the advent of mostly advanced "western" technology and inventions, people can travel the world over both physically and through cyberspace to gain instant knowledge on all sorts of disciplines, culture, etc. Even the west has been producing vast amounts of information and literature on the east, including CHN, to add on to the understanding of humanity. So do not think the west, especially the US, is ignorant about CHN and elsewhere.

    On the subject of religion, the thorny issue of Tibet has not been resolved since it first arose. Only until more recently that Christianity has been allowed to practise. As far as I know the US is a secular state and all religions are allowed.
     
    #538 Loh, Jul 20, 2012
    Last edited: Jul 20, 2012
  19. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    It would be very interesting to find out and compare the IQ of China's Politburo members with the US's so called inner Cabinet. It could be rather embarrassing for the US.
    It may surprise many here that the US is the world's major unequal country with a Gini Coefficient worse than Africa, South America, China, Asia, and almost every country in the world.This is now at a time when the democrats are in power. Should there be a changing of the guards the republicans will probably push up the US's current Gini Coefficient of 46.8 to 50!
    Yes, both HK and Singapore and also Malaysia have Gini Coefficients that are at or worse than China's.
    Japan and western Europe are much better. China during Mao's time was also good but that was because everybody was poor! There is not much fun to have equality in poverty, what say you?
     
  20. taneepak

    taneepak Regular Member

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    The latest killings in a Colorado cinema is characteristic of the US. Such incidents will happen again and again with no end in sight.
    What is wrong with the country? Have you listened to what president Obama as well as what Romney said about this tragedy? They talked rubbish with not a single word of what each would do to prevent it from happening again. Instead, only nice words, sorry here and sorry there, with complete inaction to solve the problem.
    Arresting the murderer is merely a reaction, not the same as prevention. We see such tragic reactions all over the world, from Iraq to Afghanistan, and now the next BIG ONE "Syria" and"Iran".
    For god's sake, can't they do anything to prevent such things from happening again? Please, start being a real Statesman.
     

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