It is good to have elder statesmen, or retired entrepreneurs and top civil servants, who will speak out from time to time on various important issues of the day. In a world which is getting uglier and confusing, their inputs can certainly help us to process what the heck is going on, provide succor or reassurance, and warnings.
We have maverick Phillip Yeo talking of top notch scholars in civil service who are merely paper chasers, a reference, I think, for the need of the government’s entrenched meritocracy ideology to be able to separate the chaff from the wheat. Top civil servant Ngiam Tong Dow differentiated first generation leaders as ‘grass-roots based’ and today’s PAP as ‘elitist’. Ngiam said: “When you raise ministers' salaries to the point that they're earning millions of dollar(s), every minister — no matter how much he wants to turn up and tell (PM Lee) Hsien Loong off or whatever — will hesitate when he thinks of his million-dollar salary," It’s the moral hazard that all Singaporeans know, but coming from our top civil servant is really hitting the nail on the head.
It is in the arena of geopolitics that has existential amplifcation. As crucial as it is in today’s highly connected world, with instant communication and insidious misinformation and disinformation, it has such a mult-dimensional facet requiring vast knowledge in disciplines like history, geography, economics, finance, psychology, domestic and regional politics, the military, and much much more, where having just a star in political science does not quite cut it. It requires a special breed of people called “thinkers” to be able to discern developments going on in the world around us.
From Singapore, Lee Kuan Yew of course, was undeniably such a man. There may be many others, but of those that have spoken out, I know of only 3, namely Kishore Mahbubani, George Yeo and Prof Tommy Koh.
Kishore has a more independent mind and I perceive he has stepped on some toes of late articulating some sensitive views. From Kishore came the warning that we should be wary of the ‘warring culture” of EU. It’s a stinging rebuke of Singapore’s position on the Russo-Ukraine conflict and how to handle the China-Taiwan dispute.
George was specifically pointed out by LKY as a ‘thinker’. Being the diplomat that he had been, no less a Foreign Minister, George has been able to air his views, sometimes controversial, in a palatable manner. His latest comment on Donald Trump is an example. He has shown he does not succumb to mainstream media, taking a view on Trump that would have got him canceled, yet parlayed in a manner that seemed non-partisan. I was very pleased his comment on Trump resonates with mine which hasn’t won me many friends, but it’s good to have George on my side.
As for Tommy, I like him for a nice fella, but disappointed in some of his thoughts on geopolitics. He mostly toes mainstream media lines and lacks the punching insights of Kishore. For example, he wrote the article in 2020 “US Presidential Election – A Quest For Understanding". It sounded so CNN or MSNBC that I felt compelled to write a critique of Tommy Koh’s blog. Check out his article and my criticism and you will understand what I mean.
In the recently concluded Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, President Putin was asked for his views on the coming US 2024 elections. You can check this at about 1.48 timeline. He had some interesting observations none of which Kishore, George or Tommy has ever touched on. One particular point I want to highlight is Putin said what’s going on in US is political persecution of Trump, and that to him is good. Because it shows the political corruption of the American system and reveals who we are dealing with.
I bring up this comment of Putin to underline a point I made in my blog in October 2022.
Read my blog about the genesis of cultural change in US : “Cancel Culture - Who Let The Dogs Out, Does Temasek Have A Hand In This, And Thank Goodness For Trump”The point that I made is the advent of Trump in 2016 frustrated the final swing of America to communism, an agenda plotted after WWII and marvellously brought to the brink by Obama, the Manchurian Candidate. Identity politics of Obama caused the divisiveness in US and now conveniently blamed on Trump’s brashness. Typical Democrat use of Communist tactic to blame the opponent for problems they themselves created. My point, which as far as I know, has never been proposed by anyone else up to now, is the arrival of Trump forced the Democrats to turbo speed their socialism agenda at a time when the US demographics are not yet ready. Liberals form only 25% of the population. The progressive Left has majority only in the cities, not the rural belts. In their all-out hatred and opposition of Trump, they are all forced to come out of the dark shadows. The Devils are now in the open.
Only Putin and I have made this point that the political prosecution of Trump is good because it exposes the Devils to the world.
A parting shout out :
Plato said:
“The price good men pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men.”
If you like what you read here and feel it matters Singaporeans know stuff like this, please click and share with your social circle. This makes my effort worthwhile.
This platform has withdrawn it's subscriber widget. If you like
blogs like this and wish to know whenever there is a new post, click the
button to my FB and follow me there. I usually intro my new blogs
there. Thanks.