Town Council Sinking Funds

Some of these things can really make your blood boil. See article below:

New rule to safeguard council funds
 By Tan Hui Yee & Mavis Toh
 ST Dec 2, 2007

TOWN councils tempted to play the stock market to increase the returns on their sinking funds will now have to meet a new rule that caps how much they can put into higher-risk investments.

Councils, which have had some leeway when investing their cash, must limit their investments in non-government stocks, funds or securities to 35 per cent of the sinking fund.

This new rule, which kicked in yesterday, applies to more than $1 billion in sinking funds managed by the 16 town councils in Singapore.

The money is collected through monthly service and conservancy charges and government grants and is used for cyclical repairs, such as re-painting or re-roofing.

The Ministry of National Development brought the rule in to strike a balance between councils trying to get good returns on their funds and not taking undue risks with residents’ money.

Some council cash has been going into shares and corporate bonds, which are considered riskier than government ones.

The president of the Society of Financial Service Professionals Leong Sze Hian said: ‘Corporate bonds are only as good as the company can pay. The risk of a company running out of money is higher than that of the Government.’

Before the new rule, council investments were governed by the Trustees Act, which placed restrictions on some instruments. The new 35 per cent cap is seen as stricter, but no council contacted by The Sunday Times said it would have trouble complying.

The Hong Kah Town Council has about $150 million in its sinking fund, with one-third invested in government bonds returning 2 to 3 per cent. Another third is in short-term fixed deposits with returns of 1.5 to 3 per cent, with the rest handled by fund managers.

The investments can include corporate bonds and stocks, which are riskier. But this portion, handled by fund managers, nets about 8 to 10 per cent in returns a year, said council chairman Ang Mong Seng.

Sinking funds are typically parked in safe investment instruments, such as government bonds and fixed deposits. But a few years ago, many councils felt that they could do better by investing in other instruments, such as shares.

Many then let fund managers invest a bigger portion of their cash and reap better returns.

One billion dollars?! That’s  $1,000,000,000  in sinking funds, did I read that right?

Imagine an average of just 3.5% returns on that a year, that would be $35,000,000. Using the Hong Kah Town Council as the standard template for every town council, the returns would range between $38,000,000 – $43,000,000 a year!

That probably isn’t a lot of money compared to how much our PM earns a year ($3,500,000), but just how the hell are these funds accumulated? If not profits from conservancy charges we paid each month, just how on earth did our town councils, which supposedly provide public services in our constituencies, turn into a profit making entity? And if the sinking fund did indeed come from the money we paid to them, wouldn’t that fact alone means we are being over-charged for our conservancy charges?

That aside, I almost couldn’t recall any case in which we were given cuts in our conservancy charges when they are making that kind of money. Above which, with that kind of money, how the hell do they even justify the amount we are paying them every month now?!

For driving away the Monday Blues…

Took these off the Internet…

Have a good laugh to drive away the Monday blues. It’s Monday again… pffft!!!


Shortly after President Bush took office, an old man approached the White House from the park across Pennsylvania Ave where he’d been sitting on a park bench. He spoke to the U.S. Marine standing guard and said, “I would like to go in and meet with President Clinton.”

The marine looked at the man and said, “Sir, Mr. Clinton is no longer president and no longer resides here.”

The old man said, “Okay,” and walked away.

The following day, the same man approached the White House and said to the same Marine, “I would like to go in and meet with President Clinton.”

The marine again told the man, “Sir, Mr. Clinton is no longer president and no longer resides here.”

The man thanked him and, again, just walked away.

The third day, the same man approached the White House and spoke to the very same U.S. Marine, saying “I would like to go in and meet with President Clinton.”

The marine, understandably agitated at this point, looked at the man and said, “Sir, this is the third day in a row you have been here asking to speak to Mr. Clinton. I’ve told you already that Mr. Clinton is no longer the president and no longer resides here. Don’t you understand?”

The old man looked at the Marine and said, “Oh, I understand. I just love hearing it.”

The Marine snapped to attention, saluted and said, “See you tomorrow, Sir!”


Lorena Bobbit’s Sister Arrested

API – Clearwater Florida – Lorena Bobbitt’s sister Luella was arrested yesterday for an alleged attempt to perform the same act on her husband as her famous sister had done several years ago. Sources reveal the sister was not as accurate as Lorena. She allegedly missed the target and stabbed her husband in the upper thigh causing severe muscle and tendon damage. The husband is reported to be in serious, but stable condition.

Luella has been charged with one count of a misdewiener.


Barbara Walters was doing a documentary on the customs of American Indians. While touring a reservation during the documentary she was puzzled as to why the difference in the number of feathers in the headdresses. So she asked a brave who only had one feather in his headdress, and his reply was: “Only have one woman: one woman, one feather.”

Feeling the first fellow was only joking, she asked another brave. This brave had two feathers in his headdress. And he replied: “Me have two women: two women, two feathers.”

Still not convinced the feathers indicated the number of sexual partners involved, she decided to interview the Chief. Now the Chief had a headdress full of feathers which, needless to say, amused Ms. Walters. She asked the Chief, “Why do you have so many feathers in your headdress?”

The Chief proudly pounded his chest and said: “Me Chief! Big, small, fat and tall, me sleep with ’em all.”

Horrified, Ms. Walters stated, “You ought to be hung.”

The Chief said: “You damn right, me hung, big like buffalo, long like snake.”

Ms. Walters cried, “You don’t have to be so hostile.”

The Chief replied: “Hoss-style, dog-style, wolf-style, any style, me sleep with ’em all.”

With tears in her eyes, Ms. Walters cried, “Oh dear.”

The Chief said: “No deer. Ass too high, run too fast.”


The French Leader got a coded message from Bush Administration.
It read: S370HSSV-0773H

The French were stumped and sent for the French Information Agency.

The FIA was stumped too, so it went to the Russians…
The Russians couldn’t solve it either, so they asked the Germans…
The Germans, having received this same message during W.W.II from the Americans,
suggested turning it upside down…


Virus alert.

There is a new virus: code name is ‘work’. If you receive ‘work’, from your colleagues, your boss, via e-mail or any where else, do not touch ‘work’ under any circumstances!! This virus wipes out your private life completely. If you should come into contact with this virus, put on your jacket and take two good friends and go straight to the nearest pub. Order a tequila shot and after repeating 10 times, you will find that ‘work’ has been completely deleted from your brain.

Forward this warning immediately to at least 5 friends. Should you realize that you do not have 5 friends, this means that you are already infected by this virus and ‘work’ already controls your whole life. This virus is deadly. Please pay close attention to it and take heed.


At Heathrow Airport today, an individual, later discovered to be a public school teacher, was arrested trying to board a flight while in possession of a compass, a protractor, and a graphical calculator. Authorities believe he is a member of the notorious Al-Gebra movement.

He is being charged with carrying Weapons of Math Instruction!


Most people don’t know that back in 1912, Hellmann’s mayonnaise was manufactured in England. In fact, the Titanic was carrying 12,000 jars of the condiment scheduled for delivery in Vera Cruz, Mexico, which was to be the next port of call for the great ship after its stop in New York.

This would have been the largest single shipment of mayonnaise ever delivered to Mexico. But as we know, the great ship did not make it to New York. The ship hit an iceberg and sank, and the cargo was forever lost.

The people of Mexico, who were crazy about mayonnaise, and were eagerly awaiting its delivery, were disconsolate at the loss. Their anguish was so great, that they declared a National Day of Mourning, which they still observe to this day.

The National Day of Mourning occurs each year on May 5th and is known, of course, as Sinko de Mayo.


The United States Treasury has announced they are recalling the new Texas quarters.

“We are recalling all of the new Texas quarters that were recently issued,” Treasury Undersecretary Russell Shackelford said in a press conference Monday. “This comes in the wake of numerous reports to this agency that the quarters will not work in parking meters, toll booths, vending machines, pay phones, or other coin-operated devices.”

The winning design for the Texas quarter was submitted by Texas A&M student William Doutrieux.

“We believe the problem lies in a design flaw,” said Shackelford. “Apparently, the duct tape holding the two dimes and nickel together keeps jamming the coin-operated devices.”


Bill Gates’ wife gave birth last year to a baby girl. The Gates’s decided that any girl born to them would be named Adelle.

When the girl was born, the doctor said “Dude, you’re getting Adelle!”


For those of you who watch what you eat… Here’s the final word on nutrition and health. It’s a relief to know the truth after all those conflicting medical studies.

  1. The Japanese eat very little fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
  2. The Mexicans eat a lot of fat and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
  3. The Japanese drink very little red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
  4. The Italians drink excessive amounts of red wine and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.
  5. The Germans drink a lot of beers and eat lots of sausages and fats and suffer fewer heart attacks than the British or Americans.

Conclusion: Eat and drink what you like. Speaking English is apparently what kills you.


TULSA, OKLA — The Oklahoma Supreme Court has ruled on a case that many legal experts believe clearly delineates the e-mail privacy rights of computer users in the workplace. Judge Stan Musing declared that employees have a right to expect that their employers will refrain from monitoring e-mail messages transmitted on company systems.

The case went to court after programmer Augustus Lindsey’s supervisor monitored his e-mail and intercepted a message from Lindsey to a colleague. The message read: “That little sex kitten has been driving me wild. She’s moaning and begging for it every minute. Last night I was afraid someone would hear, and we’d be thrown out of the building. But don’t worry all is arranged. Wednesday she gets the knife.”

Lindsey’s supervisor alerted authorities, suspecting that a crime was in the making. Lindsey was arrested on the spot and spent an uncomfortable night discussing the situation with the police.

However, he was released in the morning, just in time to get his female cat to the vet for spaying. Lindsey sued his boss for invasion of privacy and sought punitive damages as well.


Thought for today…

There is more money being spent on breast implants and Viagra than on Alzheimer’s research. This means that by 2020, there should be a large elderly population with perky boobs and huge erections, but absolutely no recollection of what to do with them.


Jesus was wandering around Jerusalem when He decided that He really needed a new robe. After looking around for a while, He saw a sign for Finkelstein, the Tailor. So, He went in and made the necessary arrangements to have Finkelstein prepare a new robe for Him. A few days later, when the robe was finished, Jesus tried it on and it was a perfect fit!

He asked how much He owed, but Finkelstein brushed him off: “No, no, no, for the Son of God? There’s no charge! However, may I ask for a small favor?” Whenever you give a sermon, perhaps you could just mention that your nice new robe was made by Finkelstein, the Tailor.”

Jesus readily agreed and as promised, extolled the virtues of His Finkelstein robe whenever He spoke to the masses.

A few months later, while Jesus was again walking through Jerusalem, He happened to walk past the Finkelstein shop and noted a huge line of people waiting for Finkelstein robes.

He pushed his way through the crowd to speak to him and as soon as Finkelstein spotted Him he said: “Jesus, Jesus, look what you’ve done for my business! Would you consider a partnership?”

“Certainly,” replied Jesus. “Jesus & Finkelstein it is.”

“Oh, no, no,” said Finkelstein. “Finkelstein & Jesus.” After all, I am the craftsman.”

The two of them debated this for some time. Their discussion was long and spirited but ultimately fruitful, and they finally came up with a mutually acceptable compromise.

A few days later, the new sign went up over Finkelstein’s shop.

LORD & TAYLOR


Bush cost me my job, my kids and my houses

Thank you for giving me the opportunity to speak my mind. I lost my job this past year. When Clinton was president I was secure and prosperous, but in the last year, we had to close our operations. We simply could not compete with foreign labor. This foreign labor worked for low pay under very bad conditions.

They worked very long shifts, and many even died on the job.

This competition could hardly be called ‘fair’. I was forced out of the place where I had worked for 34 years.

Not a single government program was there to help me.

How can Bush call himself ‘compassionate’? Far worse, I lost two of my sons in Bush’s evil war in Iraq. They gave their lives for their country, and for what? So that Bush’s oil buddies can get rich. My pain of losing my sons is indescribable.

While it is trivial next to the loss of my sons, I regret to say that I also lost my home. I simply have nothing left. How can Bush call himself a Christian when he neglects people like me? I am a senior citizen with various medical problems. I’m not in a position where I can begin a new career. I was reduced to the point where I had to live in a hole in a ground, all because of President Bush.

And when the authorities found me there, did they have any compassion for my misfortune and ailments? No, I was arrested. Mr. Bush, I dare you to look me in the face and tell me you are a compassionate man! I dare you to look me in the face and tell me you are a Christian. If I had any money left, I would donate it to the Democrat Party.

If Al Gore had been elected in 2000 I would still have a job, a home, and most importantly, my dear sons!

Regards,
Saddam Hussein


Three Texas surgeons were playing golf together and discussing surgeries they had performed.

One of them said, “I’m the best surgeon in Texas. A concert pianist lost 7 fingers in an accident, I reattached them, and 8 months later he performed a private concert for the Queen of England.”

One of the others said. “That’s nothing. A young man lost both arms and legs in an accident, I reattached them, and 2 years later he won a gold medal in field events in the Olympics.”

The third surgeon said, “You guys are amateurs. Several years ago a cowboy who was high on cocaine and alcohol rode a horse head-on into a train traveling 80 miles an hour. All I had left to work with was the horse’s ass and a cowboy hat. Now he’s president of the United States.”


How Long Must This Go On?

Two Arabs boarded a flight out of London. One took a window seat and the other sat next to him in the middle seat. Just before takeoff, an American sat down in the aisle seat.

After takeoff, the American kicked his shoes off, wiggled his toes and was settling in when the Arab in the window seat said, “I need to get up and get a coke.”

Don’t get up,” said the American, “I’m in the aisle seat; I’ll get it for you.”

As soon as he left, one of the Arabs picked up the American’s shoe and spat in it. When he returned with the coke, the other Arab said, “That looks good, I’d really like one, too.” Again, the American obligingly went to fetch it. While he was gone the other Arab picked up his other shoe and spat in it.

When the American returned, they all sat back and enjoyed the flight.

As the plane was landing, the American slipped his feet into his shoes and knew immediately what had happened.

“Why does it have to be this way?” he asked. “How long must this go on? This fighting between our nations? This hatred? This animosity? This spitting in shoes and peeing in cokes?”


In the recent news:

CNN said that after the war, there is a plan to divide Iraq into three parts: regular, premium and unleaded. (Jay Leno)

It has just been reported that specially trained circus midgets have flown several shorties against Iraq today. (Johann von Haupkopf

Gasoline prices have gotten so high that women who want to run over their cheating husbands have started car pooling. (Fairy3Quarters)

My wife wanted to go somewhere expensive for the weekend. So, I took her down the street to the local Texaco. (Jay Leno)

AT&T announced last week it will lay off up to 8,000 employees. Ever conscious of its image, the company is promoting the layoffs as a new feature called job forwarding. (Renee From Napa)


While trying to escape through Pakistan, Osama Bin Laden found a bottle and picked it up.

Suddenly, a female genie rose from the bottle and with a smile said “Master, may I grant you one wish?”

“You ignorant unworthy daughter-of-a-dog! Don’t you know who I am? I don’t need any common woman giving me anything,” barked Bin Laden.

The shocked genie said “Please, I must grant you a wish or I will be returned to that bottle forever.”

Osama thought a moment. Then grumbled about the impertinence of the woman, and said, “Very well. I want to awaken with three white women in my bed in the morning, so just do it and be off with you!”

The annoyed genie said, “So be it!” and disappeared.

The next morning Bin Laden woke up in bed with Lorena Bobbitt, Tonya Harding, and Hillary Clinton. His penis was gone, his knee was broken, and he had no health insurance.


A photographer from a well-known national magazine was assigned to cover the recent Southern California fires. The magazine wanted to show some of the heroic work of the firefighters as they battled the blazes.

When the photographer arrived, he realized that the smoke was so thick that it would seriously impede or make it impossible for him to photograph anything from ground-level.

So he requested permission to rent a plane and take photos from the air. His request was approved, and arrangements were made. He was told to report to a nearby airport, where a single-engine plane would be waiting for him.

He arrived at the airport and saw a plane warming up near the gate. He jumped in with his bag and shouted, “Let’s go!” The pilot swung the plane into the wind, and within minutes they were in the air.

The photographer said, “Fly over the park and make two or three low passes so I can take some pictures.”

“Why?” asked the pilot.

“Because I am a photographer for a national magazine,” he responded, “and I need some close-up shots.”

The pilot was silent for a moment; finally he stammered, “So, you’re telling me you’re not the flight instructor?”


Frog

There was this little boy about 12 years old walking down the sidewalk dragging a flattened frog on a string behind him. He came up to the doorstep of a house of ill repute and knocked on the door.

When the Madam answered it, she saw the little boy and asked what he wanted.

He said, “I want to have sex with one of the women inside. I have the money to buy it, and I’m not leaving until I get it.”

The Madam figured, why not, so she told him to come in. Once in, she told him to pick any of the girls he liked.

He asked, “Do any of the girls have any diseases?” Of course the Madam said no. He said, “I heard all the men talking about having to get shots after making love with Amber. THAT’S the girl I want.”

Since the little boy was so adamant and had the money to pay for it, the Madam told him to go to the first room on the right. He headed down the hall dragging the squashed frog behind him.

Ten minutes later he came back, still dragging the frog, paid the Madam, and headed out the door.

The Madam stopped him and asked, “Why did you pick the only girl in the place with a disease, instead of one of the others?”

He said, “Well, if you must know, tonight when I get home, my parents are going out to a restaurant to eat, leaving me at home with a baby-sitter. After they leave, my baby-sitter will have sex with me because she just happens to be very fond of cute little boys. She will then get the disease that I just caught. When Mom and Dad get back, Dad will take the baby-sitter home. On the way, he’ll jump the baby-sitter’s bones, and he’ll catch the disease. Then when Dad gets home from the baby-sitter’s, he and Mom will go to bed and have sex, and Mom will catch it. In the morning when Dad goes to work, the Milkman will deliver the milk, have a quickie with Mom and catch the disease, and HE’S the son-of-a-bitch who ran over my FROG.”


Little Old Lady

A good looking biker stops by the Harley shop to have his bike fixed. They couldn’t do it while he waited, so he said he didn’t live far and would just walk home.

On the way home, he stopped at the hardware store and bought a bucket and an anvil. Next, he stopped by the feed store and picked up a couple of chickens and a goose. However, he now had a problem, how to carry all of his purchases home.

The owner said, “Put the anvil in the bucket, carry the bucket in one hand, put a chicken under each arm and carry the goose in your other hand.”

“Hey, thanks!” the biker said, and out the door he went.

But in the parking lot, he was approached by a little old lady who told him she was lost. She asked, “Can you tell me how to get to 1603 Mockingbird Lane?”

The biker said, “Well, as a matter of fact, I live at 1616 Mockingbird Lane. Let’s take my short cut and go down this alley. We’ll be there in no time.”

The little old lady looked him over cautiously, then said, “I am a lonely widow without a husband to defend me. How do I know that when we get in the alley you won’t hold me against the wall, pull up my skirt, and ravish me?”

The biker said, “Holy smokes, Lady! I’m carrying a bucket, an anvil, two chickens, and a goose. How in the world could I possibly hold you up against the wall and do that?”

The lady said, “Set the goose down, cover him with the bucket, put the anvil on top of the bucket, and I’ll hold the chickens.”


Pfizer Corp. (NYSE: PFE) is making the announcement today that Viagra will soon be available in liquid form and will be marketed by Pepsi Cola (Pepsi Bottling Group NYSE: PBG) as a power beverage suitable for use as-is, or as a mixer, under the name ‘Mount And Do’.

Pepsi’s proposed ad campaign suggests, “It will now be possible for a man to literally pour himself a stiff one.”


For centuries, Hindu women have worn a red spot on their foreheads. We have always naively thought that it had something to do with their religion. The true story has recently been revealed by the Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

When one of these women gets married, she brings with her, a dowry. On her wedding night, the husband scratches off the red spot to see if he has won either a convenience store, a gas station, a donut shop or a motel in the United States.

Just thought you would like to know.


A Philadelphia Eagles player that noticed a white powdery substance after a practice.

The FBI was called in and determined that it was the goal line.


Two old ladies were outside their nursing home, having a smoke with a good old Camel cigarette, when it started to rain.

One of the ladies pulled out a condom, cut off the end, put it over her cigarette, and continued to smoke her Camel.

Lady 1: What’s that?

Lady 2: A condom. This way my cigarette doesn’t get wet.

Lady 1: Where did you get it?

Lady 2: You can get them at any drugstore.

The next day, Lady 1 hobbles herself into the local drugstore and announces to the pharmacist that she wants a box of condoms.

The guy, obviously embarrassed, looks at her kind of strangely. She is, after all, over 80 years of age. But very delicately the pharmacist asks Lady 1 what brand she prefers.

The elderly Lady 1 replied “Doesn’t matter son, as long as it fits a Camel”.

The pharmacist fainted.


With all the sadness and trauma going on in the world at the moment, it is worth reflecting on the death of a very important person which almost went un-noticed last week.

Larry La Prise, the man who wrote “The Hokey Pokey,” died peacefully aged 83. The most traumatic part for his family was getting him into the coffin.

They put his left leg in – and things just started to go downhill from there.


The typewriter was invented by Hungarian immigrant Qwert Yuiop, who left his ‘signature’ on the keyboard.


Almost 150 years ago, President Lincoln found it necessary to hire a private investigator – Alan Pinkerton – for protection. And that was the beginning of the Secret Service. Since that time, federal police authority has grown to a large number of multi-letter agencies – FBI, CIA, INS, IRS, DEA, BATF, etc. Now we have the‘Federal Air Transportation Airport Security Service.’

Can’t you see them now, these highly trained men and women in their black outfits with their initials in large white letters across their backs: FATASS.”

… I feel safer already.


I sat, as did millions of other Americans, and watched as our government underwent a peaceful transition of power in January 2001. At first, I felt a swell of pride and patriotism as I watched George W. Bush take his oath of office. However, all that pride vanished as I watched William Jefferson Clinton board Air Force One for the final time. I saw 21 U.S. Marines in full dress, with rifles, fire a 21-gun salute to the outgoing President.

It was then that I realized how far America’s military had deteriorated. Every last one of them missed.


George W. Bush not only smiles and waves nicely, always knows the right thing to say, too!

Bush and the Queen at London Heathrow, a 300-foot long red carpet is stretched out to Air Force One and Mr. Bush strides to a warm but dignified handshake from Queen Elizabeth II.

They ride in a silver 1934 Bentley limousine to the edge of central London where they board an open 17th century coach hitched to six magnificent white matching horses.

As they ride toward Buckingham Palace, each looking sideways and waving to the thousands of cheering Britons lining the streets, all is going well.

But suddenly the right rear horse lets fly with the most horrendous, earth-rending, eye-smarting blast of gastronomic flatulence ever heard in the British Empire, including Bermuda, Tortola and other islands.

It shakes the coach.

Uncomfortable, but under control, the two dignitaries of state do their best to ignore the whole incident, but then the Queen decides that’s ridiculous.

She turns to Mr. Bush and explains, “Mr. President, please accept my regrets. I’m sure you understand that there are some things that even a Queen cannot control.”

George W. Bush, ever the gentleman, replies, “Your Majesty, please don’t give the matter another thought. You know, if you hadn’t said something, I would have thought it was one of the horses.”

慈善机构和管理人员的薪金…

“我认为要吸引称职的专业人员到慈善机构任职,可行的办法就是支付全职员工相当于他们在企业界担任另一份责任相当的工作所领的工资,否则慈善公益界将因无法吸引足够的专业人员,而在效率和管理方面落后于私人企业界。”吴作栋 无作用呼吁企业界领导人更积极地挺身担任慈善机构董事,以透过他们的专业管理经验去加强慈善机构的监管机制和运作效率,从而赢得民众对慈善团体的信心。


以上是我们 ‘资政’ 老吴最近对慈善公益界的管理所做的一番谈话。

起初我还以为老吴是要本地既然已经那么有钱了的企业界领导人大发善心,在不计较收入下多做点公益。但我有一次失望了。因为行动党的精英又一次把马车放到马的前面来了。这颠倒乾坤般的 “逻辑” 层出不穷到在令人叹为观止的境界。

慈善团体和企业界最大的不同点就在于,一个企业的资本与盈利并不是靠着民众的善心得来的。民众对慈善团体之所以失去信心,最基本的就是民众无法容忍和接受,甚至无法原谅慈善团体的高层的高薪。况且,杜莱虽然得到高薪,但是他的行为可否为 NKF 赢得任何信心? 难道老吴不知道也是应为 NKF 的事件才使到民众不再信任任何的慈善团体,甚至对它们感到失望?

只要用心细想就会明白,当大家看到须要善款的人的痛苦而慷慨解囊时,都是认为每一分的钱都会到达他们手上的。如果很大的部分是用来支付某些所谓的专业人员的薪金,那么就请这些专业人员以完全不依赖民众的善心的方式把钱弄来。要不然,凭什么要求民众接受部分的善款是用来支付某些所谓的专业人员的薪金呢?难道用高超的手段 – 例如艺人玩命 – 来激发民众的怜悯之心,就是所谓的管理和效率?

如果连在慈善机构工作都是 ‘以钱为本’,什么都 ‘向钱看’ 的话,那么行动党政府最好把全部的慈善机由财政部接收,让财政部长来管理,让后再提高消费税来解决好了。

薪金全世界最高的新加坡部长们,难道会有人比他们更称职? 既然行动党的高官都是人才,都那么本事,何必还须要什么企业界领导来帮忙?

我呸!

Is there a need for God?

I recently received an email regarding the film The Golden Compass. The mail alleged that the film starring Nicole Kidman and based on a series of books by author Peter Pullman is anti-Christianity. (Excerpts of the mail can be found here.)

Whatever Pullman’s stand is, I’ll leave it to one’s own conviction whether to catch the film or not. Either way, I have never been quite comfortable with linking Hollywood and religion, be it against or in support – as in the case of ‘The Passion’ and ‘The Chronicles of Narnia’.

Such actions border on fanaticism and it brings conflict between believers and non-believers which only further deepens any existing misunderstanding. In fact, such conflicts are really unhelpful and have already brought many to ask, ‘Is God (or religion) still relevant in the present day where science is attempting to answer every phenomenon in the physical world?’

Indeed, it would appear that the world has more conflicts as a result of religion. Some of the enmity today is a result of wars more than a thousand years ago between two major monotheistic religions – Christianity and Islam.

Thus, we believe that God is outdated and irrelevant. Faith in a God is the superstition of the under-informed and the ignorant. Friedrich Nietzsche goes so far to say ‘God is dead!’. And the post-modern man goes even further to claim, ‘God is but a construct of our intellect. There was never a God.’

Yet, mankind today placed as much faith (if not more) on many other things as we used to place in religion or God in the past. For e.g. we believed that the physics behind the elevator has been worked out properly by engineers and it will take us safely to the level we are going to. We step onto a bridge, and believed the civil engineers have worked out the math to ensure it will support all that weight on it. We go to work on the 60th floor of a sky-scrapper, without fear of its collapse because we believed the architects have worked out the sums correctly and pillars of the right size are supporting the building. It doesn’t matter we don’t actually go find out on ourselves if all of these things we believe in are really done as they should be. We believed what our science textbooks tell us – for e.g. E=mc^2, F=MA, V=IR, 1+1=2 etc. – just like our forebears would have believe in the commandments of God or the tenets of their religion.

Has science and its offspring technology become a substitution for God? Have they make our world better since it is science which allowed us to understand many things?

Technology has definitely provided us much creature comforts. We have automobiles that takes us to our destination quickly and conveniently, planes which whisk us across half the planet in a day, and air conditioners that makes our dwellings comfortable. We already possessed the power to make changes to large tracts of our landscape. But at what cost? At the cost of exploiting our planet’s resources in which we replaced with tonnes of waste a year in the form of trash and carbon dioxide. The cost of maybe the death of million other species, and our planet with it.

Also, because of limited resources, science would have taught us to use our resources in the most cost effective ways possible. Taken to the extreme, that would mean we should euthanise people who are brain dead; and abandon the old and less productive and also those who has disabilities (or even kill them before birth).

But since pagan Rome has Christians been taking in people who are sick and desolate and to give care to them. Is science really more superior than the belief in God?

It is almost funny that many people who doesn’t believe in a God also believe that if we have some ‘oughts’ we need to enforce, we should just make a law to do so – for e.g. banning chewing gum entirely because we ought to keep the MRT free from gum that get the doors stuck. We ought to maintain our parents and not abandon them so we make laws to punish such people and set up family courts where parents can sue their unfilial children. We ought to allow everyone to freely express themselves and to do what they want, so any strong objections against that should be labeled a ‘hate crime’ and be outlawed. We ought to separate the matter of religion and politics and not mix the two.

But on what basis do we apply our laws? Morality? If the basis is morality, then wouldn’t one’s morality simply just be one’s own bigotry or self-righteous views then? Why is there still a need for ‘oughts’ (i.e. socially acceptable norms) if that’s the case? Take for example, if you felt that I should give up my seat to a pregnant lady, who are you to enforce it upon me since I would have felt it is equally right for me to occupy that seat because I have paid the same fare and I am tired? Yet, anyone who hears of such an argument would visibly wince or even protest loudly about the person’s selfishness.

Some would even call morality the attempt to use God to enforce one’s own bigotry. But think further, why are there things that we will all universally feel indignant about? Why are there things that we instinctively would feel is wrong? For e.g. why would a child lie and try to push the blame away when confronted for the missing candy in the candy jar for the first time, even when no one has told him that it is wrong? Why is there this concept of ‘conscience’?

We must also ask, where did some of our more humane ideals such as equality come from? Granted there are bastards that wouldn’t practice what they preach, is it not true that Christianity teaches that we should love all as we loved ourselves? Is it also not true that some of the greatest fighters for equality and freedom are driven by their faith in God? Without God, would the world not have degenerated into a dog-eat-dog world, where the strongest would dictate the terms and the weak would just be exploited? Yet, it will take no one much convincing that it is only right to protect the weak.

Is there really no God, or like me, I just see God everywhere? And no, I am not pitching for anyone to start having some kind of religious beliefs, but this has been eating at me for awhile and I just felt a need to say it.

1 106 107 108 109 110 186