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Lee Kuan Yew, Founding Father and First Premier of Singapore, Dies at 91
- thesumofall 12y agoSingapore is an incredible state and I enjoy every stay there, but the principle where "the good of society [takes] precedence over individual rights" has its scary downsides: http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/07/29/the-social-laboratory/ http://foreignpolicy.com/2014/07/29/the-social-laboratory/
- seanmcdirmid 12y agoLee did good and bad: he successfully set up a stable productive state, but to get there economized certain liberties that seem fundamental. The problem is that Singapore remains stable and successful, becoming the role model for developing autocratic countries like China.
- sanxiyn 12y agoWhy is that a problem?
- ptaipale 12y agoIt is scary; the model creates welfare but does restrict freedom somewhat more than many people like.
- kyllo 12y agoGo to Singapore and see how the immigrant laborers from South Asia live, how the native Malays live, and then how the ethnic Chinese and Western expats live. It's a highly stratified society where money makes the rules.
- orcdork 12y agoYou could say the same thing for the UK. Yes, i do realize there are vast differences between immigration in the UK (or the west overall) and Singapore, but find that blaming class differences and/or the mistreatment of poor immigrants to policies is to simplify the issue.
- seanmcdirmid 12y agoI don't think they use arbitrarily strict libel laws in the UK to shut down opposition parties. Also, political leadership in the UK is not dynastic.
- jpatokal 12y agoNo, Singapore's approach is fundamentally different. Singapore does not tolerate "poor immigrants": instead, it imports a vast menial labor class, who are tied to their employers on fixed-length contracts that amount to somewhere between indentured servitude and slavery. Some all-too-typical stories: http://twc2.org.sg/ http://twc2.org.sg/
- crdoconnor 12y ago>You could say the same thing for the UK. You really can't. There's no comparison to be made between the way Singapore treats Bangladeshis and the UK treats Poles.
- kyllo 11y agoOr the way the UK treats Bangladeshis for that matter.
- skinnylatte 11y agoHave you seen how the poor 'native Malays', poor 'ethnic Chinese', poor 'ethnic Indians' and 'lower class Western expats' live... side-by-side, in rather bad neighbourhoods (which would seem spectacular in most Western countries)?
- ocrammer 12y agoThe Singapore he created is a testament to his philosophy of pragmatism over idealism. No doubt there are serious downsides to this approach, but as a citizen of the bureaucratic and populist EU I can't help but admire what it has achieved in just a few decades.
- l10nf15h 12y agoLets not forget that Singapore executes a higher percentage of its population than any other country on earth and canes people slicing into flesh.
- seanmcdirmid 12y agoI thought they mostly executed foreigners getting caught running drugs through the airport?
- l10nf15h 12y agoSingapore will also execute anyone for simply possessing a firearm.
- ptaipale 12y agoNot quite, Wikipedia: "Trafficking in arms (Section 6) is a capital offence in Singapore. Under the Arms Offences Act, trafficking is defined as being in unlawful possession of more than two firearms."
- l10nf15h 12y agoThat is still shocking to anyone in the US where the ratio of guns to people is 1:1.
- sjwright 12y agoThe 1:1 ratio of guns to people is shocking to the majority of the civilised world. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fP3HJVp3n9c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fP3HJVp3n9c
- refurb 12y agoWhy? Many other countries come close to that ratio. Is there something intrinsically bad about that?
- kiyoto 12y agoFor all his shortcomings, LKY has shown the world how well a tiny city-state can do economically with geopolitical leverage and strategic thinking. Especially when it comes to diplomacy vis-a-vis the West, most Asian political leaders are confused (and confusing) at best and belittled (and bewildering) at worst, but no leader of the West fucked with LKY in his prime. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VexrmTacOAA https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VexrmTacOAA Once in awhile, I watch that footage of Meet the Press to remind myself what a sharp political leader he was. RIP the benevolent dictator.
- maceo 12y agoAmazing video. The only other person I've watched handle the press with such clarity and grace is Malcolm X.
- walterbell 12y agoThat was impressive, thank you. Is there a way to search YouTube for other Meet the Press videos from the 1960s?
- DevX101 12y agoOne of the greatest leaders of modern times. Singapore was a backwater country with no natural resources when he came to power. It's since evolved into one of the primary economic hubs in Asia, with a higher per-capita GDP than her former colonizers, Great Britain. To transform a country in such short a time is nothing short of remarkable.
- stefantalpalaru 12y agohttp://therealsingapore.com/content/why-are-frail-elderly-still-working-s%E2%80%99pore http://therealsingapore.com/content/why-are-frail-elderly-st...
- skinnylatte 11y agoThis is kind of the equivalent of someone posting something from Breitbart or NYPost and saying "this is real news".
- stefantalpalaru 11y agoYou don't like the source, lah? Take this one instead: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-06/what-retirement-singapore-older-workers-stay-on-the-job http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-06/what-retir...
- azeusa 11y agoplease, don't use "lah" or any other form of Singlish. it's condescending and, worse, embarrassing for you when you get the syntax wrong, as in this case.
- stefantalpalaru 11y agoSpeak good English lah! And dun worry about my syntax leh.
- skinnylatte 11y ago
- deleted 12y ago[deleted]
- jpatokal 12y agoSingapore is in for some seriously interesting times. Lee Kuan Yew did a masterful job of getting Singapore up to speed after independence, but like so many leaders over-identified with their nation, he overstayed his welcome. The Lee family's tentacles are firmly entrenched in the politics and businesses of Singapore, and while I hope they will have the common sense to tolerate the inevitable rise of the opposition -- which is already occurring, despite the steep odds stacked against them -- I'm afraid they're much more likely to lurch into outright dictatorship and fulfill Lee's own prediction: "if there is a freak result [and the opposition wins], within two or three years, the army would have to come in and stop it” http://leewatch.info/quotes/ http://leewatch.info/quotes/ That date is not far off: Singapore's next general election must be held by January 2017, and the opposition is all but guaranteed to take a sizable portion of seats. Thanks to Singapore's first-past-the-post politics, if they grow from the current 40% to tip over 50%, they'll suddenly have an unassailable majority... and what then? I'll give the final word to Lee's last standing arch-enemy, Chee Soon Juan: “Why is he still so afraid? I honestly think that through the years he has accumulated enough skeletons in his closet that he knows that when he is gone, his son [Lee Hsien Loong, the current Prime Minister] and the generations after him will have a price to pay. If we had parliamentary debates where the opposition could pry and ask questions, I think he is actually afraid of something like that. ... Mr Lee Kuan Yew fights all his demons within himself to try to shore up his reputation. In the process, however, he destroys the very legacy that he so desperately desires to establish.” – Chee Soon Juan, Secretary-General of the Singapore Democratic Party
- jpatokal 12y agoThe opinion above was formed by living in Singapore for ~8 years and continuing to take an active interest in its affairs for the next 5. You're welcome to disagree, but please tell me why then instead of just downvoting...
- ersii 12y agoDo not worry when you get down votes, especially not if you do a second look at your text in a calm state and you think that it contributes. There are times when you unfortunately will get stuck with down votes - but most times, there will be plenty of people who will read your comment even if it's grayed out - and then vote it up.
- jmgtan 12y agoI've lived in Singapore for almost 5 years already and have recently switched citizenships (my son would have to serve in Singapore's military service once he reaches the appropriate age). I have come to appreciate Singapore's style of governance. The sheer efficiency and reliability of government service still surprises me to this day. Having come from the Philippines where bribing somebody in the government to get things done is part of normal life. I am all too willing to sacrifice a bit of freedom to gain stability, reliability, and peace. Not worrying about the safety of my wife and child when they come home late is a huge thing for me. Yes Singapore has it's own set of societal problems, but I'd rather have that than the numerous problems that is deeply entrenched in Philippine society nowadays. Rest in peace Mr LKY. Your accomplishments are legendary.
- unethical_ban 12y ago> I am all too willing to sacrifice a bit of freedom to gain stability, reliability, and peace Bribery as a matter of course for accomplishing mandated tasks is its own kind of servitude.
- judyzhou 11y agoThank you for coming and being part of our singapore family
- contingencies 12y agoAsshole's dead. Good riddance. Stole power on a platform of communism, moved to totalitarianism / familial nepotism, set up his 'wealthy, modern' state by money laundering for Burmese junta, struck up a cheap friendship with US (easy sale: naval positioning for the straits, cable taps on comms, aggressively purchasing regional comms providers in places like .au), did a PR job on .sg's great 'democracy'. His biography - Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going - is a disgusting exercise in narcissism attempting to rewrite history. Dirty man, dirty state, dirty legacy.
- jpatokal 12y agoOut of curiosity, how would you rank Singapore against its neighbors Malaysia, Thailand and Indonesia?
- contingencies 12y agoFar more totalitarian.
- skinnylatte 11y agoSeriously? Have you been to any of these countries?
- contingencies 11y agoSingapore: Yes, 5-10 times between 1989 and 2014. It's gotten a hell of a lot more generic and 1984-like in that time. The character once present been trampled in favor of dystopian public housing for immigrant laborers and a cleanliness. Frankly, last time I was there it gave me the creeps so much I was haunted by the smiley-faced actors in the propaganda-piece on permanent repeat in the airline departure lounge. Thailand: Perhaps 30+ times from 1989 to two weeks ago. My wife (mainland Chinese Muslim) and I lived there for awhile, and our daughter was born there. We can read and write to some extent, speak the language, and have many friends - local and foreign - from all levels of society (journalism, finance, diplomacy, mafias, restaurant and bar operators, media, etc.) including those who have been 'kicked out'. Malaysia: Perhaps 5-10 times from 1989 to a month ago, including smaller islands, though never to Borneo. It has a worrying governmental tendency to trend toward the Singaporean model, however away from KL this is lessened. Many successful Malaysians are either economic migrants to Singapore or operate businesses owned in some way by Singapore-resident straits Chinese. Indonesia: Twice since 2012, but for months at a time spanning the most populous parts of the archipelago. Have had in-depth one-on-one discussions about the history of western relations with its diplomats. Have been invited to attend conferences in its national university. Owing to corruption, it has its issues, but it has preserved a certain admirable diversity that increases as you move east. Sure, they have their problems (eg. deforestation). However, the two faced Singaporean government blames the Singapore-owned palm oil plantations - burned regularly - on Indonesia ... but in fact I've had Singapore-resident Straits Chinese admit to me they own them. What about you, just-arrived 7 point karma naysayer?
- queryly 11y agoI haven't been in Singapore and have read very little on why Singapore is so successful. Three of Four Asian Tigers (Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea) are more democratic/free and equal in prosperity comparing with Singapore. IMHO, a great strategic port and super effective government are probably key reasons that power the its great achievements. I hope people don't consider quasi-dictatorship style of governing the cause of economic miracle.
- crdoconnor 11y agoOne trade policy that they followed that was identical to that of Hong Kong, Taiwan and South Korea was the suppression of the value of their currency by purchasing US treasuries. That gave a much needed boost to their exports and allowed them space to create an industrial ecosystem. China did this too, later.
- cplease 11y agoI don't see how you can say Hong Kong is more democratic/free. It was a colony, now it's a SAR of PRC, which has been tightening its fingers. The people are certainly more free to protest (for the time being), but their politicians are hand-picked by Beijing. Not really better than Singapore where the administration sets up arbitrary barriers to opposition political activity, and announces elections on short notice while gerrymandering new districts to divide and conquer and pockets of opposition support.