All is not well in singapore.
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The once bankrupt and restructured KENAIR travel has again gone into closure, a well known travel agency that existed for 35 years ....
Go around any kopi-tiam, you will see many old folks selling packets of tissue and collecting empty soft-drink cans as their main souce of income..
In HDB estates, the situation is even more terrible. So many shops have closed down. Sole proprietor are dividing their small HDB shop into four microscopic parts and letting them out for a measy few hundred dollars, just to substain their rent..
Savings in the bank doesn't yield as much interest as in the past.. The advice from our parents that keeping money in the bank for our future doesn't apply to our kids.. its not a people's bank as proclaim any more, with 2 dollars deduction for accounts less than 500, and some bank 1000..
Go to Jalan Besar, China town and you will see the Living wretched old man lives by scrapping and sleeving off old electrical wires of appliances to sell the copper as scrap,cutting out old carton boxes to sell etc...
They struggle just to earn enough money for a days meal. It is a day to day survivor for many peasants out there.. everything seems to be going down-hill.. It doesn't help with our very own propaganda state controlled sh*t times, where information is often doctored, and people are mis-inform of whats the real situation..
We can see many tents being put up at east coast, where those poor peasants call it their home.. something that does not happen in the past..Look around your neighbourhood blocks at night. See how many flats remain dark.. With many unemployed, bankruptcy is at a record high..
All is definately not well with sinkaporeans.. But NO.. many still live in self denial mode and put on blinkers of cosmetic to show... With only a small minority who flash their high lifestyle, it is often depicted as the lifestyle of the general sinkapore population as a whole... -
While Khoo was jobless for 10 months, the family's electricity supply was cut, telephone line disconnected and they had little food. They sometimes ate in the dark and the children studied near the window, making use of light from the corridor.
For now, the family - they have four children, aged three to 17 - is getting by on hand-outs from relatives, close friends and neighbours. But Madam Ziah does not want to live off others forever.
She will move the family in with her in-laws and rent out their three-room flat in Bukit Panjang, to earn some money. The eldest son is also pitching in by working part-time at McDonald's while studying in ITE, but might have to give up school.
Despite the situation, Madam Ziah defended Khoo as a 'good man' who never lost his temper, despite his mounting frustration. 'But I would rather he scolded or slapped me than go rob a bank.'
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April 2, 2005
Maybank robber gets 4 1/2 years, 9 strokes
He collapses on hearing sentence and is taken to hospital; judge says stiff penalty needed to protect the public
By Ben Nadarajan
DESPITE a heart-rending mitigation plea by a man who tried to rob a Maybank branch last November, a judge dished out a severe punishment to him yesterday.
District Judge Tan Puay Boon sentenced Brian Khoo, 43, to 4 1/2 years' jail and nine strokes of the cane, after saying that protecting the public was the court's overriding concern.
Khoo collapsed after hearing the sentence.
Blind in the right eye and physically weak as a result of being shot twice by a Cisco guard during the attempted heist, Khoo did not hear his sentence when the judge pronounced it.
He had to turn to the court interpreter to find out what it was.
But the interpreter could only say 'four years ...' before Khoo gasped in shock.
'Four years?' he blurted out, before collapsing onto a fellow inmate in the dock.
The packed public gallery reacted with shock at the collapse, while policemen, lawyers and court staff nearby helped Khoo up.
The judge adjourned the court session while some police officers rubbed medicated oil on Khoo's forehead. But he remained in a daze.
An ambulance had to be called, and he was stretchered out of the court and taken to hospital.
The judge, who took a day to deliberate the sentence, said earlier that he had considered the accused's personal circumstances leading to his attempted stick-up at the Maybank branch in Bukit Timah on Nov 9.
Khoo had been jobless for 10 months and became increasing depressed because he could not provide for his wife and four children, aged between three and 17.
In an impassioned plea before the court on Thursday, Khoo moved several people to tears when he expressed remorse for what he did.
But yesterday, the judge said: 'No banks or financial institutions should be thought of as places where people can resort to obtaining easy money, however difficult their financial positions may be.'
He added: 'No worker or customer at these places should ever be subject to the terror the staff members and the customer of the bank had felt when the accused committed the robbery.'
Though sentenced to nine strokes, Khoo may escape caning because of his poor health.
The judge said he would refer all of Khoo's medical reports to the prison authorities.
If they decide that Khoo is unfit to be caned, they could refer the matter back to the court, and the judge would then decide whether or not to spare the rod.
Khoo suffered multiple facial fractures and has two bullet fragments lodged in his head as doctors felt it was too dangerous to remove them.
Escaping caning may not lighten Khoo's sentence though. Several lawyers told The Straits Times that under the Criminal Procedure Code, the judge could choose to up his jail term by as much as 12 months to 'compensate' for doing away with the caning. -
shd i paint my nails pink or purple?
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YEs we are.But when you have the choice to walk the system from young and enjoy cushy jobs and privilege, or walk outside the system and face a tough life, many would choose the former.
Can this sustain?I'm not sure.But if you've been given a chance to get back into the elites, how many can say they would walk away from a good life?
Moral and emotional blackmail?Hell yes. -
purple, pink is way too chao lian.
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In the first place, are we on the fair playing ground when, Free Poly Scholarships was given for 130 foreigners.. 20% students are FTs under scholarships.. 77% scholarships or $611m given to FTs..Originally posted by LazerLordz:YEs we are.But when you have the choice to walk the system from young and enjoy cushy jobs and privilege, or walk outside the system and face a tough life, many would choose the former.
Can this sustain?I'm not sure.But if you've been given a chance to get back into the elites, how many can say they would walk away from a good life?
Moral and emotional blackmail?Hell yes.
So for the lesser privilege singaporean, are we going to ignore them? who should they turn to? -
pink..purple color must fit your whole dressing.inc ur lipOriginally posted by FireIce:shd i paint my nails pink or purple? -
some nus profesor said there might be more earthquakes coming within these few months.
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i decided on maroon........
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what about transparent layer, but must polish nice niceOriginally posted by FireIce:i decided on maroon........ -
huh?Originally posted by kingofbeholder:what about transparent layer, but must polish nice nice
base coat?
top coat?
gloss? -
i not gal so i dont know what the official name lah..Originally posted by FireIce:huh?
base coat?
top coat?
gloss?
got abit shinning coat ontop that one. -
The confidence of the ordinary man and woman on the road now is low with so much uncertainty.. Who would dare to settle down and multiply and add burden to himself/herself? So many young couples are delaying having kids, the most having a kid..
It's a vicious cycle.. Because we produce less, more FTs are invited to come and take our jobs, our university places, etc.. Seems like we are screwed.. Most FT's will never come here to settle down and assimilate because they also have their own parents to take care back home..
Therefore, the talent pool here will be forever depending on FTs since locals are never given the chance to gain experience with so many jobs going to FTs.. Ultimately, with a greying population, untalented and unexperienced working local citizens, and high dependencies on FTs to run this country cheaply, seriously I can't see how life is going to get better.. -
u need any lessons on beauty tips?Originally posted by kingofbeholder:i not gal so i dont know what the official name lah..
got abit shinning coat ontop that one. -
stop whining.Originally posted by caramon:The confidence of the ordinary man and woman on the road now is low with so much uncertainty.. Who would dare to settle down and multiply and add burden to himself/herself? So many young couples are delaying having kids, the most having a kid..
It's a vicious cycle.. Because we produce less, more FTs are invited to come and take our jobs, our university places, etc.. Seems like we are screwed.. Most FT's will never come here to settle down and assimilate because they also have their own parents to take care back home..
Therefore, the talent pool here will be forever depending on FTs since locals are never given the chance to gain experience with so many jobs going to FTs.. Ultimately, with a greying population, untalented and unexperienced working local citizens, and high dependencies on FTs to run this country cheaply, seriously I can't see how life is going to get better.. -
WTF less people for more jobs? then why still unemployment?Originally posted by caramon:The confidence of the ordinary man and woman on the road now is low with so much uncertainty.. Who would dare to settle down and multiply and add burden to himself/herself? So many young couples are delaying having kids, the most having a kid..
It's a vicious cycle.. Because we produce less, more FTs are invited to come and take our jobs, our university places, etc.. Seems like we are screwed.. Most FT's will never come here to settle down and assimilate because they also have their own parents to take care back home..
Therefore, the talent pool here will be forever depending on FTs since locals are never given the chance to gain experience with so many jobs going to FTs.. Ultimately, with a greying population, untalented and unexperienced working local citizens, and high dependencies on FTs to run this country cheaply, seriously I can't see how life is going to get better.. -
These so-called jobs are way down the food chain.And there are a lot of problems that need to be solved first, and they are not even in the economic sphere...More of basically how this nation is run and scripted.
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i seriously think the govt's new baby policy wont help much. our cost of living is ridiculously high. everything seems to be going up. jobs are not secure like a decade ago. it really takes a gamble to get married and on top of that, have a baby.
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i do think khoo has suffered enough for his misdeed. i hope the judge won't give him more jailtime to "compensate" if he's unfit for caning.
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dont understand why some people choose to have so many children when they do not have the corresponding earning ability.Originally posted by HENG@:i do think khoo has suffered enough for his misdeed. i hope the judge won't give him more jailtime to "compensate" if he's unfit for caning. -
i fail to see how that has any impact on compassion in this case.Originally posted by dragg:dont understand why some people choose to have so many children when they do not have the corresponding earning ability. -
wat to eat for lunch today?
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coz he is good citizen that listen to what the government say...ask ppl to have more children but never tell them how to support them......Originally posted by dragg:dont understand why some people choose to have so many children when they do not have the corresponding earning ability.
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That's bleddy out of point man..Originally posted by Dead_Man_Inc:wat to eat for lunch today?
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oohh pai seh...
