And here's more to feast your eyes...

WON'T GET FOOLED AGAIN [till the next boo-boo]

Click here for the BigO homepage

'SO BE IT'

"If I have to shoot 200,000 students to save China from another 100 years of disorder, so be it."

- Lee Kuan Yew endorsing the Tiananmen massacre, the nation-builder press, August 17, 2004. Kuan Yew is the elder statesman of $ingapore. He is a congenital pragmatist. He currently holds the post of Mentor Minister in $ingapore's cabinet where the current prime minister is General Lee Hsien Loong.

General George Yeo of $ingapore with Burmese General Thein Shin [left]. This picture was taken in April 2007.

THE SANDBEGGERS

Financial Times: Burma sand to fill $ingapore's needs by John Aglionby

April 5 2007: Burma has offered to help $ingapore meet a shortage of badly needed construction materials after Indonesia banned sand exports and seized granite shipments headed to the city-state. According to General George Yeo, $ingapore's foreign minister, Lieutenant General Thein Sein, the third-ranking member of Burma's ruling junta, told him during a recent visit that the regime could "be a long-term supplier of sand, cement, granite and other construction materials to $ingapore".

Construction costs have risen noticeably in $ingapore since Indonesia banned sand exports in January, 2007. Last month, Jakarta seized some two dozen barges and tugboats preparing to transport granite to its tiny resource-poor neighbour.
Click here for the full report.

THE GENERAL'S HOSPITAL

As recent as January of 2007, when the ruler of the military junta in Burma, General Than Shwe was ill, he promptly took a jet to $ingapore for a stay at $ingapore General Hospital [sic.] Read the Reuters report here:

Myanmar leader in $ingapore hospital
http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSSIN138922

ASIA'S 'FINANCIAL PARKING LOT'

"'$ingapore's relationship with the Burmese junta is pragmatic, in both commercial and what one might call 'national need' terms,' suggested a Western embassy regional analyst in Bangkok, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"'$ingapore's foreign minister, General George Yeo, was one of the first regional government officials to trek out to that oddly located new capital Naypyidaw earlier this year. But he did not go there to admire the place, it was for national need. $ingapore needed building materials, such as a supply of sand that Indonesia had just stopped delivering,' the analyst said."

Click here for the full report.
http://www.irrawaddy.org/article.php?art_id=8464

$INGAPORE SHOWS SOLIDARITY WITH BURMA

Bald but with "balls"... $ingapore police stop any protest in $heep city.

When the monks started their march for peace against the military regime in Burma it was just a few hundred in Rangoon. By Sept 24, the country was awashed with tens of thousands of monks and ordinary people marching together in cities across the whole of Burma.

On Sept 25, Burma’s celebrities join in the protest. Top local movie actor Kyaw Thu offered the clerics alms at Shwedagon Pagoda in the first show of public support by local celebrities to the country’s biggest anti-government protests in two decades. Kyaw Thu is not a state-sponsored or government-funded artist.

On Sept 2, we noted this report in $ingapore’s nation-builder press:

The [$ingapore] police have warned those thinking of taking part in a procession involving Myanmar nationals not to go ahead with their plans.

"A similar assembly held without a permit last Saturday at the Orchard MRT station resulted in 23 Myanmar nationals being called up for investigations. [translated: they were arrested]

"It is believed that they were protesting against a huge hike in fuel prices back home - an unpopular decision in Myanmar which has led to widespread demonstrations there as well.

"A police statement said investigations are in progress and that the protest involved those here voicing their support for other Myanmar nationals in Myanmar. Investigations showed that last Saturday’s assembly was organised through a series of SMSes initiated by three Myanmar nationals.

"Those who turned up that day, dressed all in white, split into smaller groups before starting a procession towards City Hall MRT station. Police would like to remind the public that they should not participate in an assembly or procession that does not have a permit as it is an offence,’ a police spokesman said." Yada yada yada…

$ingapore and Burma [or Myanmar] have very close ties. $ingapore is Burma’s biggest supporter investing more than a billion in the country. Other countries have trade sanctions against the military regime.

As recent as January of 2007, when the ruler of the military junta in Burma, General Than Shwe was ill, he promptly took a jet to $ingapore for a stay at $ingapore General Hospital [sic.] Read the Reuters report here:

Myanmar leader in Singapore hospital
http://www.reuters.com/article/latestCrisis/idUSSIN138922

Even as $ingapore shows solidarity with Myanmar, the Burmese show solidarity with the monks:

Tens of thousands support monks in Burma protests [Sept 24]
http://www.guardian.co.uk/international/story/0,,2175945,00.html

+ + + + +

"WE WILL GIVE HELP BUT NOT TOO MUCH"*

The nation-builder press, September 18, 2007.

According to the press report, The National Union Corporation of $ingapore's Care and Share Fund will disburse a total of $1.6 million this year, the SAME as last year.

*An echo from 2001 when the then Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong set the standard for government aid to the poor - "not too much." $ingapore government ministers are the highest paid in the world, in excess of $30 million a year.

+ + + + +

LAS VEGAS SANDS WANTS TO BORROW S$5 BILLION TO BUILD GAMBLING RESORT IN $INGAPORE

Guess what? Las Vegas Sands, one of the two casino operators allowed to build a gambling resort in $ingapore, wants to BORROW all the money to build this resort from $INGAPORE banks, ie $ingaporeans. The report was barely noticed on Friday�s [Sept 21, 2007] edition of Toady [a brief mention on pg 44], the local nation-builder press.

$4 billion was big news on September 19, 2007, but not the S$5 billion loan?

According to a report in Malaysia�s Star [Sept 21, 2007], "The casino company hired eight banks including Goldman Sachs Group Inc and $ingapore-based DBS Group Holdings Ltd, Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp and United Overseas Bank Ltd, to arrange the S$5bil borrowing, the sources said."

According to Forbes magazine�s latest poll [issued last week], the THIRD RICHEST AMERICAN in the U.S. is casino magnate Sheldon Adelson (US$28 billion), head of Las Vegas Sands.

Are $ingapore banks willing to take up the challenge to pour money into the PAP�s latest growth strategy? According to a Bloomberg report the collateral for the loan will be the casino itself.

By the way, Las Vegas Sands is rated Ba3 by Moody�s and BB- by Standard and Poor�s. In the parlance this is �sub-investment grade�.

The PAP government have taken the bet that gambling resorts will lead the country into prosperity and growth.

More reports here:
Las Vegas Sands seeks record $ingapore loan to construct casino in nation
http://www.iht.com/articles/2007/09/20/business/sxsands.php

Las Vegas Sands seeks record $ing dollar loan
http://biz.thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2007/9/21/business/18952067&sec=business

The last time a $ingapore company made the news was Asia Pulp & Paper. It borrowed billions on the global financial market. Here�s the old Bloomberg report from March 12, 2001:

Asia Pulp & Paper to Default on $12 Billion in Debt

�Asia Pulp has tapped $6.5 billion from global markets in the four years to 1999, including $2.7 billion to expand business in China. Increased capital expenditures in the second quarter last year and an announced plan to raise $1 billion to finance a Malaysian pulp mill caused many investors to dump the company�s bonds last year. The plan for the mill was later shelved.�
http://forests.org/archive/asia/aspulpan.htm

+ + + + +

LOW CRIME DOESN'T MEAN NO CRIME
(The official slogan of the ministry of "Home Affairs")

The nation-builder press, September 21, 2007.

Three men, armed with a chopper, robbed four China women in the Balestier Road area on September 20, 2007. The women lost three cellphones and cash of $4,500 and 14,000 yuan (S$2,000). One of the women worked in a massage parlour in the area. It also appeared the robbers had earlier struck another massage parlour a few doors away. The victims were female Chinese nationals and they lost two cellphones and $1,800 cash. A 23-year-old $ingaporean Chinese was later arrested. He was found with three cellphones and cash of $1,109 and 13,393 yuan.

Between January and June 2007, there were 477 robbery cases. In 2006, there were 946 robberies in $ingapore.

For more: http://www.spf.gov.sg/stats/stats2007_overview.htm

+ + + + +

WHY WOULD A MULTINATIONAL COMPANY EARNING HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS A YEAR WANT YOUR 1 CENT?

The nation-builder press, September 12, 2007... "This time, the PTC (Public Transport Council)... gave the green light only for bus services to increase fares by one to two cents per trip." Hooray?

From the wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ComfortDelGro_Corporation):

ComfortDelGro Corporation Limited is the largest transport company in $ingapore, as well as the second largest in the world, with a fleet of 39,100 buses, taxis and rental vehicles. Headquartered in $ingapore, ComfortDelGro also has operations in China, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, Vietnam and Malaysia. Currently, overseas ventures account for up to 40% of the company's revenue. The Group intends to derive half of its total revenue from abroad in the next four to six years.

The company owns several subsidiaries worldwide, $B$ Transit, the largest bus company in $ingapore, VICOM Limited, a vehicle inspection and testing service provider, ComfortDelGro Driving Centre, a training centre for motorcars and motorcycle learners, Metroline (UK), Vinataxi (Vietnam), and other transport-related companies. It also has operations in Australia (Westbus Group) and China.

The nation-builder press, August 14, 2007. $ingapore's bus monopoly earned a net profit of $113.9 MILLION for the first half of 2007. In 2006, their net profit was $244 million. Do we have to ask why ComfortDelGro cannot raise fares in their overseas operations?

IT'S NOT JUST ONE CENT, IT'S ANOTHER BUS TURD

"It's because it's not just 1 cent. Nobody who uses a bus makes only 1 trip a day. How will the commuter return home? If you make 4 trips a day at an extra 2 cents per trip, that's already 8 cents more. And if you calculate the hike for the family, IT'S NOT JUST 1 CENT."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror Of Opinion, September 12, 2007.

ComfortDelGro's NET PROFIT (2003-2007)

2007 - S$113.9 million (half-year)
2006 - S$244.6 million
2005 - S$201.9 milion
2004 - S$200.6 million
2003 - S$134.0 million

Total: S$895 million. Profit not enough?

The ruler of the road, the DETERMINATOR of Distance, the King of Far, Gerard Ee, has granted his permission in his position as King of the Public Transport Council for the 7th fare hike in 8 years [visit http://www.ptc.gov.sg/FactsAndFigures/chronologyOfFareAdjustments.htm]. From 2000 to 2006, fare revisions were carried out every year except for 2004. Another year, another bus turd.

There will be no protest. Here's why, click on the banner below:

$INGAPOREANS, CLICK HERE TO SEE WHAT YOU'VE BEEN MISSING

Note: Those who are sensitive and easily offended please do not click on the link.

===========

$ingapore government company Temasek Holdings, headed by Ho Ching, paid S$3 BILLION for a 2% stake in Barclays in July 2007. That investment has already made paper losses of �150 MILLION when Barclays shares tumbled. Read more: http://www.bigozine3.com/rarities/

NOT ROCKET SCIENCE, BARCLAYS UNLIKELY TO GET ABN AMRO

The Scotsman, Sept 11: BARCLAYS' investment banking head has admitted for the first time that the rival offer from the Royal Bank of Scotland consortium for ABN Amro would probably win at its current price.

A sharp fall in share prices in recent weeks means that Barclays' offer, which is 37 per cent in cash, is currently about US$12bn less than the bid from the Royal Bank of Scotland consortium, which is 93 per cent in cash.

The whole story by Martin Flanagan here: http://business.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=1449772007

The $ingapore government's Temasek Holdings paid S$3 billion to get a foot into Barclays' bid. Both rival bids close on Oct 4 and 5.

IF BARCLAYS IS FOCUSED, COULD IT LET US KNOW WHAT ON...

Telegraph UK comment by Damian Reece, City Editor, Sept 11: "Bob Diamond, president of Barclays, has confirmed what we've been saying for weeks: that the Royal Bank of Scotland consortium trumps Barclays when it comes to bidding for ABN Amro. This doesn't mean to say it's a great deal for RBS, but at least it's spreading the bad risk among partners rather than taking it all itself.

All that stands in the way of RBS's determination to win are the Dutch regulators or its consortium falling apart. Remarkably, despite the market turmoil of the past month or so, RBS is still there with its two partners. Like a captain and his two first officers who have lashed themselves to the wheelhouse, they remain on deck, heading for their Dutch port in a storm.

The timing of Diamond's comments, just a few days before Barclays shareholders gather for a crucial vote on the ABN deal, would leave me, if I were a shareholder, asking, well, what's the point? If Bob doesn't think we can win, without the intervention of the financial gods, then shouldn't we be focusing on something else? This year Barclays has gone from the bank trying to buy ABN to the bank that's failing to buy ABN. It's had to tap the Bank of England for an emergency �1.6bn while embroiling itself in a row with the central bank over how it has managed, or mismanaged, the current liquidity crisis. And that's not to mention the sudden departures and urgent refinancings of esoteric debt vehicles along the way. I think it's time Barclays seriously thought about "moving on", as Tony Blair would have said.

The rest here: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/money/main.jhtml?xml=/money/2007/09/11/ccom111.xml

BARCLAYS INJECTS US$1.5 BILLION INTO GOLDEN KEY

Barclays Capital has thrown a US$1.5 billion (�738 million) lifeline to a third, controversial, highly geared fund that ran into trouble because of the global liquidity squeeze. Golden Key, which has US$5 billion of assets under management, is a structured investment vehicle (SIV) that was designed by Barclays Capital and managed by the Geneva-based asset management group Avendis.

In a statement, Golden Key said it had been working with a "leading investment bank" to develop a restructuring proposal. A spokesman for Golden Key declined to name the bank but sources said it was BarCap. In the past two weeks, Barclays has stumped up a total of US$4.1 billion to bail out three funds.

More: http://business.timesonline.co.uk/tol/business/industry_sectors/banking_and_finance/article2434459.ece

IS BARCLAYS A GOOD INVESTMENT? YOU BET

+ + + + +

$ingapore's Toady finally reports on Temasek Holdings and Barclays, September 7, 2007 and reproduces The Telegraph article. $ingapore government company Temasek Holdings paid S$3 BILLION for a 2 per cent stake in Barclays in July 2007. That investment has already made paper losses of �150 MILLION when Barclays shares tumbled. By September 5, Simon Israel, the NZ-born executive director of Temasek Holdings, was in London to "dispel myths about Temasek" reported The Telegraph, UK. A tele-conference would have been cheaper. Read more: http://www.bigozine3.com/rarities/

As $ingapore media seems coy on the subject, here's more background.

BARCLAYS TAKES A MONEY-MARKET BEATING

Sept. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Every morning, the British Bankers Association asks 16 banks how much it would cost them to borrow dollars, euros and pounds from each other. It then calculates what are known as the London Interbank Offered Rates, benchmark levels that set the cost of money around the world.

The final round of contributions at the end of last week threw up a troubling anomaly. Barclays Plc, the UK's third-biggest bank, told the BBA that borrowing pounds for three months would cost it 6.8 per cent -- more than any other bank on the panel, and a full 11 basis points above the official Aug 31 fix. Three-month euros would cost Barclays 4.76 per cent, also more than any other contributing bank. Three-month dollars, meantime, would cost 5.75 per cent which -- yes, you've guessed it -- was also the highest rate among the 16 institutions canvassed.

So what the hell is happening at Barclays and its Barclays Capital securities unit that is prompting its peers to charge it premium interest rates in the money market?

Here are some things we know, and some things we don't know.

We know that Barclays tapped the Bank of England for emergency overnight funds twice last month at the central bank's penalty rate of 6.75 per cent, which is 1 percentage point higher than its benchmark rate. On Aug 20, it borrowed �314 million pounds (US$631 million) to backfill a loan from HSBC Holdings Plc that had gotten delayed for unspecified reasons.

Last week, it asked the central bank for as much as �1.6 billion pounds. After initially declining to comment on whether it was the bank that had sought the funds, Barclays later put out a statement citing a "technical breakdown in the UK clearing system." It went on to say "there are no liquidity issues in the UK markets," and that "Barclays itself is flush with liquidity."

Hmmm. If there are no liquidity issues in the UK markets, why is the average three-month rate for borrowing British pounds at 6.69 per cent, the most expensive since December 1998 and the highest it's been above the Bank of England's benchmark rate for at least 20 years?

...As one of my editors used to preach, "in price, is knowledge." There's knowledge buried in the price that Barclays is being charged in the money markets. We just don't know what that knowledge is yet.

Mark Gilbert of Bloomberg finds out a bit more: http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601039&refer=columnist_gilbert&sid=a8uEKKBYY7As

HELPING THE NEEDY

The following is the leader for The Guardian, Sept 5, 2007.

One might need a keen ear and a specialist dictionary to understand them, but our bankers are starting to lobby hard. And, however silkily they put it, what they want is a helping hand from the rest of us.

Yesterday's Daily Telegraph was a prime example. Grandees of finance (unnamed, naturally) told journalists that the Bank of England was being "Victorian" in not helping more during the recent market turmoil. As criticism that may sound mild, but it was practically bullying compared to this weekend's comment from Barclays' president, Bob Diamond: "For the recovery to continue we need to find more ways to get liquidity into the short end of the curve." Which in English means: help, please.

Why would $ingapore's Temasek Holdings want a 2 per cent stake in a bank like this?
Read on http://business.guardian.co.uk/economy/story/0,,2162564,00.html

BARCLAYS ABN BID HOPES SINK AS SUBPRIME ISSUES RISE

Why Temasek Holdings wanted a stake in Barclays?

LONDON (MarketWatch) , Sept 3 -- As Barclays PLC scrambles to support clients reeling from the collapse of the subprime debt market in the U.S., the prospects for it to address a widening shortfall in the value of its revised bid to acquire ABN Amro Holding NV are withering.

Analysts say that as Barclays responds to a continuing series of funding challenges stemming from the activities of its investment banking unit, Barclays Capital, the clock is ticking down on its EUR58.6 billion ($80.2 billion) offer for the ABN Amro, the future of which shareholders in the Dutch bank will ultimately decide, most likely in early October.

"ABN Amro is looking increasingly unlikely by the day," said James Hutson, analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods. He says that as the collapse of subprime lending plays out "things are emerging and Barclays is always there" trying to work out a solution for clients.

...Barclays, in July revised its bid for ABN Amro to increase the amount of cash it would provide and to tap China Development Bank and Singapore's Temasek Holdings for an investment of up to EUR13.4 billion. The new cash-and-shares offer, which was valued at EUR67.5 billion at the time, put Barclays within shouting distance of a EUR71.1 billion cash and shares offer for the Dutch bank by a consortium of banks led by Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC (RBS.LN).

However, over the past month, the value of the Barclays offer has deteriorated due to a sharp decline in the value of its shares. - By Henry E. Teitelbaum

The rest is here: http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/barclays-abn-bid-hopes-sink/story.aspx?guid=%7BCABD2ED7-E88B-4F79-8F7D-851306450F55%7D

Why is Temasek's Simon Israel in London? To dispel myths? Right.

One month later, August 27, 2007.

THE FIRST WORD ON TEMASEK-BARCLAYS DEAL

"We are pleased to have this opportunity to invest in Barclays. We look forward to supporting them in their strategy to create opportunities for a higher level of sustainable growth. This investment fits well with our interest for long-term exposure to strong players in the financial services sector."

- Temasek's Managing Director Frank Tang, July 23, 2007.

+ + + + +

NO INFLATION
(news capsule on Page H16)

RISING INFLATION
(backpage cover story)

Both items ran in the nation-builder press, August 31, 2007.

"Propaganda should be consistent."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, August 31, 2007.

+ + + + +

"The 1 percentage point hike in the CPF interest rate will benefit the majority of $ingaporeans and translate to SUBSTANTIAL GAINS for them, said Prime Minister (General) Lee Hsien Loong yesterday." - The nation-builder press, August 20, 2007. (Our emphasis.)

PEANUTS

"Credit Suisse said that $ingapore banks have a small exposure to collateralised debt obligations (CDOs), which are losing value amid concerns over the troubled US sub-prime mortgage market." - The nation-builder press, August 3, 2007.

"One man's big deal is a government bank's peanuts."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, August 20, 2007.

DBS Bank is a $ingapore government-owned private bank. The report says it has "exposure" of under S$1 billion.

= = = = =

CAN YOU LIVE LONGER THAN ME?

The world's oldest person, a Japanese woman who counted eating well and getting rest as her hobbies, died Aug 13 at age 114, a news report said. Yone Minagawa, a widow who lived in a nursing home but was still sprightly late in life, died "of old age" Monday evening, Kyodo News reported.

Born on January 4, 1893, Minagawa was already in her 50s when Japan surrendered in World War II. She had been certified as the world's oldest person by the Guinness Book of World Records after Emma Faust Tillman, the daughter of freed American slaves, died in January. Despite her advanced age, Minagawa was said to enjoy eating sweets and counted eating well and getting a good night's sleep as the secrets of her longevity.

Japanese women are the world's oldest living people, in what experts attribute to a traditionally healthy diet and high standard of medical care. Their life expectancy was a record 85.81 years in 2006, according to the government. Japanese men are the world's second oldest with a life expectancy of 78.8 second only to men in Iceland who on average live to be 79.4.

$ingapore's PAP government recently revealed a $ingaporean's average lifespan is now longer. $ingapore estimates it at 85 years old [we reckon the PAP government calculates it as retirement age of 65 + 20 years, the period of the annuity]. We've done it, we have beaten Iceland's world record. For your reward, the $heeple of $ingapore are now expected to cough up dollars for a brand new compulsory ANNUITY* scheme. The fine print on the new contracts are still being worked over.

*Do a Google on the web. Many insurance sites explain the term, some more fairly than others. Remember an annuity is a "product" in the hands of insurance people. And they want to sell it.

In today's nation-builder press (August 24, 2007), former ISD agent Chua Lee Hoong used the life expectancy figures provided by $ingapore's Coalition of the Willing partner's US Census Bureau. Why not the UN's figures? Visit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_life_expectancy for a comparison of life expectancy figures.

WHERE'S MY ANNUITY?

The nation-builder press, August 22, 2007.

"Sorry-lah, you have to live beyond 85."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, August 22, 2007.

114 is not too far away.

CAN A $INGAPOREAN BEAT THIS WORLD RECORD?

Who in $ingapore can beat the record and live longer than 114 years? If we were punters, we'd put our dollars on Mentor Minister Harry Lee Kuan Yew who at the age of 83 [Lee will be 84 on Sept 16] looks fit, hale and hearty. He certainly looks like he is eating well and getting a good night's rest. So here's to your 114th. Just 31 years more to go...

+ + + + +

JUST EXACTLY WHY DO WE NEED THE MUSIC INDUSTRY?

Rock & Rap Confidential - Maybe in the beginning the RIAA sincerely thought its lawsuits against downloaders would scare people away from file sharing. But the RIAA admits that the number of "illegal" file sharing households in the U.S. hasn't gone down since 2003. So why the 20,000 lawsuits? Because it's a way to, in effect, sell music at wildly inflated prices. Sisouda Soysouvanh of Seattle paid the RIAA US$8,250 for downloading eleven tracks. That's $750 for Duran Duran's "Girls on Film" and each of 10 other songs. According to Levi Pulkkinen in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, the average settlement paid by western Washington residents to record companies is $4,924. The average fine for those who just ignore the lawsuit is $6,100. Applying those figures to the nationwide total of 20,000 lawsuits, that's over US$100 million in blood money to the record companies without having to prove anything in a court of law.

According to Seattle attorney Lory Lybeck, the record companies deliberately pick on those who can't afford to fight back: "There's a predominance of these lawsuits filed against people who can't participate in the federal legal system." Jane Winn of the University of Washington points out that "[only] the richest Americans - those in the top 20 per cent when it comes to wealth - can afford help." Few of those who owe the RIAA money can pay cash, so they have to go to the bank to take out a loan, making the actual payout even larger and providing an unexpected boost to the bottom line of financial institutions.

The nation-builder press Jan 14, 2006.
$ingaporeans Mohd Faizal Osman (left) was jailed for three months and Mohamad Azry Zainol was jailed for four months. Deputy Public Prosecutor Toh Shin Hao had also requested that the pair's computers - three desktops and one notebook - be destroyed. The duo were arrested August 2005 after a tip-off by the Recording Industry Association of $ingapore. Hey, no worries, $ingapore has the Yellow Ribbon Project for ex-jailbirds.

2,000 $INGAPOREANS* MAY FACE JAIL FOR ILLEGALLY DOWNLOADING ANIME

A $ingapore company, Odex, that distributes anime [Japanese cartoons] hired a U.S. company to track illegal downloaders in $ingapore. Odex managed to get $ingapore ISPs to reveal the downloaders IPs and have sent letters to them. According to an internet poster, the letters request a simple settlement of up to S$5,000 or the matter will be brought to court. If you go by precedent, already two $ingaporeans have been sentenced to jail for sharing music without permission. $ingapore signed a Free Trade Agreement with the U.S. that binds us to follow U.S. copyright laws. As far as we know, no other Asean country has such an agreement.

The advertisement appeared in a local nation-builder newspaper, August 17, 2007. Are these pirated DVDs? And if so, why are they allowed to be advertised in a nation-building newspaper?

The internet poster said no warning letters were issued to request the downloader to stop. Many of the $ingaporeans caught were students, one as young as nine years old. The poster said: "how many files you downloaded didn't matter; when you downloaded them didn't matter too, since you may have stopped since June but Odex is backdating your downloading activity (some fans say to up to 2 years)."

According to the poster, Odex says the Japanese copyright holders made them do it. But there has been no such case anywhere in the world where Japanese anime producers are suing fans for downloads. So far only the RIAA in the U.S. has been using legal letters to collect fines for what they deem are illegal music downloads.

So why is this happening in $heep City, $ingapore?

* At press time, Odex has 1,000 names of alleged illegal downloaders. If the $ingapore courts rule in Odex's favour, another ISP must hand over another 1,000 names.

$INGAPOREANS, CLICK HERE TO SEE WHAT YOU'VE BEEN MISSING

Note: Those who are sensitive and easily offended please do not click on the link.

'YOU CAN'T DO MUCH WHEN YOU'RE DEAD' - NEW PATRIOT

Note: Passport in pocket, new patriots are ready to go anytime.

The nation-builder press, August 9, 2007.

THIS ACTIVIST WON'T CONTEMPLATE JAIL-TIME FOR HIS CAUSE

President of Think Centre Sinapan Samydorai in the nation-builder press, December 10, 2004.

"$ingapore is full of congenital pragmatists. The values of the old patriot are long dead and gone."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, August 9, 2007.

+ + + + +

HOW MANY $INGAPOREANS ARE THERE IN $INGAPORE 2007?

2000:

The nation-builder press September 1, 2000.

2007:

$ingapore population figures (2006 estimates) as given on the official website:
http://www.singstat.gov.sg/stats/latestdata.html

The last time the $ingapore government revealed the total number of $ingapore citizens was on September 1, 2000. The total then was 2,973,091.

In 2007, on the government's website, the number of $ingapore citizens is UNKNOWN. What is reported on the website is this: $ingapore Residents = 3,608,500.

THE EVER-SHRINKING $INGAPORE CITIZENSHIP EFFECT

"When you factor in $ingapore's falling birthrate, rising number of $ingaporeans migrating, the 150,000 - 250,000 $ingaporeans currently living abroad, your guess is as good as ours as to how many $ingapore citizens are living in $ingapore. Only the government's statistics department knows and it is not revealing."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, August 3, 2007.

+ + + + +

REPORT CARD
[Occasional updates on life in $heep City]

IN 2001

The nation-builder press, March 20, 2001.

IN 2007

The nation-builder press, July 21, 2007.

From the 2007 report, "but mental health or psycho-social problems top the charts. Nearly a third are being seen for psychological problems."

"Six years later, mama weer all crazee now."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror Of Opinion, July 21, 2007.

$ingtel advertisement. The other sacred cow slaughtered in $ingapore - freedom of speech. Media in $ingapore is controlled/owned by two groups with close ties to the totalitarian government. Their mission is to be "nation-builders" reporting to the Ministry of Truth.

FREEDOM IN $HEEP CITY?

"Really? Oops, it's just an advert by telco $ingtel in $heep City."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, August 3, 2007.

+ + + + + +

Hey it rhymes.

WE THE $HEEPLE OF $INGAPORE...

Remember $heep City's national pledge?

What kind of society are we supposed to build? "...a democratic society based on justice and equality."

So what about homos, lesbians, gays?

According to NMP Siew Kum Hong [aka Xiao Jinhong aka limabean], in $ingapore "rights" don't mean beans.

In a report in the nation-builder press [July 16, 2007], Mr Siew aka Mr Xiao aka Mr bean explained how the government can be persuaded, "You've got to phrase it in the lingo that will convince the government, and what is that lingo? I think we all know. It is all about growth, job, money."

And he added, "Pitching your arguments in terms of civil rights... will not take it very far." He's being pragmatic like Mentor Minister Lee Kuan Yew, the congenital pragmatist.

Building "a democratic society based on justice and equality" is just an "idea" for the $heeple to believe. Definitely not the way the ruling class or the PAP and their cronies behave.

So why is Mentor Minister Lee Kuan Yew considering making homosexual sex legal? Because he cares for their civil rights? Ask Mr Siew aka Mr Xiao aka Mr bean. He knows their "lingo".

http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/288311/1/.html

WHO SAID THIS?

The nation-builder press, Aug 9, 2005.

"Whatever the 'lingo', the message is always the same - it's the $heeple's fault."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, July 27, 2007.

PM Lee Hsien Loong... proud to lead $ingaporeans.

$INGAPORE WINS TWO WORLD RECORDS

Thousands of $ingapore students have smashed two Guinness World Records - having the world's longest chain of balloon hat wearers, and the other, having the most number of people donning the gear. Thousands of students put on their CREATIVE CAPS to design the whacky headgear at a Balloon Hat Festival over the weekend July 21-22 at Bishan Park. $ingapore has been breaking the record since 2005.

$ingapore scientists attempting to make the world's best underwear for men have one major obstacle. Men in $ingapore have NO BALLS.

Sony's I Luv Freedom advertisement. The other sacred cow slaughtered in $ingapore - freedom of speech. Media in $ingapore is controlled/owned by two groups with close ties to the totalitarian government. Their mission is to be "nation-builders" reporting to the Ministry of Truth.

FREEDOM IN $HEEP CITY?

"Really? Oops, it's just an advert by Sony in $heep City. That customers who buy their blue tooth devices have freedom to access their files, messages, etc."
- The young, restless and cynical Mirror of Opinion, July 27, 2007.

+ + + + +

GUNSMOKE

In $ingapore's parliament on July 18, 2007 the Minister of State for Education, Mr Gan Kim Yong, told the house that only 987 or 4 per cent of foreign students are currently in $ingapore's universities.

The nation-builder press, front page lead story, July 18, 2007.

By Friday, the nation-builder press ran a different story.

The nation-builder press, July 20, 2007.

It was clear that the 987 figure was too low. It was the subject of some biting, cynical postings on the net. Here's one:

"This episode is incredible on so many levels. First, our first-class civil servants write this incredibly misleading speech for this Minister of State. Then, our one-and-only newspaper company which is completely controlled by the government splashes it on the frontpage headlines.

Then, after getting questioned using simple logic, the entire thing collapses.

And the government still pretends that�'locals' are the same as Singaporeans. If we had real newspapers and TV stations, the reporters would have stuck a mike under the nose of Tharman and asked him point blank on live TV how many non-Singaporeans are in Singapore universities.

And, if this Minister of State were indeed some high-flying lawyer making millions in the private sector, and he made this kind of mistake, he'll never hear the end of it and his millions will quickly shrivel up after getting sued by his clients. If the government wants super-high private sector pay, they'll have to take super-high private sector risks as well." - The Censor

Mr Gan Kim Yong is a career civil servant who has made his way up to Minister of State.

Mr Gan Kim Yong was Head (Research) at the Ministry of Home Affairs in 1989. It is not clear if he was part of $ingapore's secret police, the Internal Security Department [ISD], which is housed in the Ministry of Home Affairs.
http://www.parliament.gov.sg/AboutUs/Org-MP-CV-GanKimYong.htm

Mr Gan has not explained why he gave the figure of 987.

Click here for more