If Buy Car for CNY, Buy Diesel or Hybrid, Got CEVS Discount Mah!

When 1 January 2013 come, newly registered cars with lower carbon emissions got up to $20,000 discount off… chope, the ARF, not full price. Wah! But ah, from 1 July, new cars with higher carbon emissions would kena a tax of up to $20,000. Piangz!

The Green Vehicle Rebate system would close shop liao when this new Carbon Emissions-based Vehicle Scheme (CEVS) open car. Now Cat A COE at $77,201 and Cat B at $92,400! KNN Who will buy new car now! Oni those towkay or ah sia kia, those desperate need it for work or family or those damn stupid. $92,400 to burn on a piece of paper called COE?  Might as well burn as hell money make hungry Japanese soldier ghost happy and gives me winning 4D so I can be as rich as a minister. Or I takes money invest in junk bonds which are sibeh hot now more worth it!

But hor, this CEVS is a good thing to hedge any COE increase if die die want to buy car before CNY. If you buy low carbon emission chia like Prius C 1.5, about $145,000 , rebate can be up to $20,000 or more than 10% discount! But must read fine print – the $20,000 discount is for ARF nia and some more got min $5,000 ARF. In the end, gahmen never give real freebies one an always got catch! Eye must open besar besar dua dua. Anyway, Borneo actually say hor cheaper to buy Prius now under Green Vehicle Rebate compared to CEVS time.

So if you really mati mati max benefit from CEVS when buy low carbon emission car, make sure the ARF is smelly smelly $25,000 and got $20,000 CEVS – not that many liao the choices for Cat A cars. The other factor is not go for hybrids, but for diesel which oso got lower carbon emissions and got chance to take the CEVS discount of up to $20,000.

The tax now for Euro V diesel cars is $1.25/cc. Chop! Carrot head! But from 1 January 2013, the new diesel tax is $0.40/cc, ormost like 66% discount sial, but subject to min $400 diesel tax. Tax almost the same as petrol cars liao like that. Now 1.6 diesel must pay $2,000 /yr, but after January is oni $640/yr. Best lah like that!

Volkswagen early ready liao and would launch diesel versions for its cars.  Today oso did comparisons and Jetta petrol version is more expensive than diesel version. Not too sure exactly abt Today’s calculations as ARF for Jetta is abt $19,000 now and CEVS rebate is worth $15,000, so still must come up with $5,000 as that is the min ARF. Oso as diesel is cheaper than petrol when pump car, in long run can be cheaper. Maintanance of diesel car like cheaper and Ubi workshop can do compared to hybrid. But hybrid like more sart and modern, and quiet, not so malu don’t sound like taxi for those who care abt such things.

So talk here talk there what it means? Aiyah, if stubborn want to buy new shiny car now yaya before CNY as MRT often spoil, bus crowded and public transport CMI, quickly take advantage of coming CEVS regime when it just start as people still will wait and see. Gar gar lai and buy! December get ready to buy car liao before more people know about CEVS and drive up demands for COE. Look for diesel or hybrid. Diesel macam more worth as not oni “cheaper” at start as got CEVS, maintenance and running of car also cheaper. Just remember that CEVS is offset ARF and got min $5,000 ARF and it is not big discount off the overall price of car can liao.

A Summary of WP Speeches Last Night (for the lazy asses, almost like Cliffs Notes)

Here you go, a brutal cut of WP rally speeches last night, when it rained. A spread of topics, from local to national, to addressing criticisms of party dynamics, to meet the various expectations of various audience in Singapore and Hougang.

 

Similar themes as Saturday’s gig – vote for WP to preserve Hougang as a SMC and opposition ward, the last of its kind since the fall of Anson and Potong Pasir. Literally “preserve” as no PAP upgrading for Hougang if it remained in WP hands. Some policies were weakly mentioned – singles buying HDB and the adjustment of foreign workers by industry. So idiot xenophobes out there, the WP is not for you as WP is also sensible enough to know that certain sectors depend on foreign workers. Personally, the speeches which touched on national issues interested me more as I’m not a Hougang voter. WP has a difficult job of pitching the right message to the right audience in a rally setting, so no big deal.

 

Did WP give a better performance? IMHO still the same, although the rain helped. The downpour gave a dramatic flourish to the rally – they stayed on to rally, and people stayed on to be rallied and be drenched. The problem was that the curious, cynics and fence-sitters were the ones who left when the rain started, and there were many. And they would be the ones who would make the difference to whether Desmond can score better than last year. Hence, at that point onwards despite the awesome display of camaradarie of those left on the field, WP was preaching to the choir, the diehard WP fans (plus the smattering of media, plainclothes policemen, and PAP cadres!)

 

 

22 May 2012 Hougang By-election Rally speech by Sylvia Lim

So Hougang voters, I think you know which party has your welfare at heart. Is it the PAP, who for the last 20 years was quite happy to let Hougang residents suffer? Which party really cares for Hougang? You know the answer.

 

22 May 2012 Hougang By-election Rally speech by Glenda Han

Right now, singles are only allowed to purchase flats from the resale market, subjecting them to the same criteria for PR households in Singapore. Not only are singles relying on their sole income, they also have to cope with surging prices of flats in the resale market. Besides that, they also usually have the responsibility of taking care of their aged parents. This outdated rule needs to be reviewed and revised. Should Singaporean singles be penalized just because they have not found a marriage partner?

 

22 May 2012 Hougang By-election Rally speech by Pritam Singh

And I would like the DPM Teo to look into his heart of hearts and ask himself why the PAP punished the residents of Hougang, young and old, his fellow Singaporeans, NSmen of Hougang and tax-paying residents of Hougang for 21 years by putting them at the back of the queue for programs like lift upgrading? What crime did the residents of Hougang commit? I am sure DPM Teo knows that in the PAP’s eyes, the crime they committed was that they exercised their democratic right to vote – and the PAP punished everyone in Hougang for it, including their own PAP supporters

 

Png Eng Huat’s speech at second WP Election Rally for Hougang By-election

The Workers’ Party has been in Hougang for the past 21 years. We have served the community to the best of our ability despite the obstacles we faced. We have upgraded some lifts without asking the residents to pay until the HDB stopped us. We have built some covered walkways using our own funds and we will do more.

 

22 May 2012 Hougang By-election Rally speech by Chen Show Mao

Singapore should reduce its over-reliance on foreign workers through increased automation and productivity improvements of our local workforce.” …

“The inflow of the foreign workforce at all skill levels should be CALIBRATED for EACH INDUSTRY, taking into account the suitability of Singaporeans for those industries, productivity targets and sustainability.

 

SG’s Explanation on the sidetracking issue of NCMP – 22 May 2012 Hougang By-election Rally

But this is a weak attempt at discrediting the Workers’ Party. In fact, I would invite all of you to take a look at the minutes. It shows that the Workers’ Party functions in a fair and transparent manner, where decisions are made collectively. In addition, it also dispels rumours that the CEC is made up of all yes-man and women, or even fully controlled by Low Thia Khiang!

WP Fires First

Woah. Field report on the first rally for Hougang by-election.  WP starts off this quiet by-election, with a bang. Not a fast BOOM BOOM BOOM that I expected, but WTF, everyone including them are kinda jaded with this by-election and all want it over and done with. WP even ended early at 945pm with 15 minutes more to go. Heh The awkward vibe they were sending was that they are confident but not that hungry. Ooops WP is bitten by the complacent bug! Tsk tsk

The big GE was only last year and Hougang is still filled with WP supporters, so what can go wrong, so WP thinks. On the mood in the air, the crowd wasn’t huge huge and the pockets of cheers, were just that, pockets. The cheers were not the contagious hair-standing rousing WORK-ERS PAR-TY so commonly chanted in the last GE.  The crowd was probably 50-100 x bigger than what PAP might have in their rallies, but still about half or at best, two-thirds of that iconic WP rally night when Yawning Bread took that 2006 photo from blk 837.

Pritam was good, still forceful, fierce and still Mossolini-ish. His was the best crackling speech IMHO of the lot, listing out all the personal failings of past PAP MPs and ministers, Devan, Chean Wan and Wee Khiang were among the names mentioned, and the subtext was that Shin Leong in context, was not that bad. Shin Leong took pussies behind people’s back. He didn’t take money under the table. Nice.

Thia Khiang, Sylvia, Shen Mao were all not 100%. Their delivery was so-so except when Thia Khiang wooed the crowd with his Teochew speech. That Malay dude, Faisal, well he is CMI, let’s be honest. Any of the Malay PAP MPs are better than him. Serious. For Eng Huat, kinda funny that he was trying to woo Teochew Hougang in Hokkien if I wasn’t imagining it. Imagine if Desmond tried to court the crowd in Hokkien, he would be mercilessly mocked. Nobody was jeering at Eng Huat though – double standards is a bitch. LOL.

Honestly, Hougang would vote for any WP candidate anyway even if they pulled Faisal over from Aljunied GRC to stand in Hougang. OK, maybe not anybody. Angela maybe CMI in light of what happened to the former Hougang WP MP.

So with WP’s first broadside shots, the smoke is clearing away and some grapeshots hit the PAP, some did not. As someone who is pro-WP, I tend to be biased that maybe WP is just warming up. But from the empty prep talk earlier, WP’s winning margin will be smaller than that last year if this lackustre speeches are sustained. WP did not focus on policy policy policy. They just touched mostly on Hougang spirit and resilience. Seriously?!  If Desmond gets more than 35.2%, that is bitter-sweet victory enough for him. WP, hold the line and advance, don’t just sit on the deck and don’t take Hougang for granted.

Budget 2012: Green Tax, Rebates and Whatnot

The only car population news that was revealed in Friday’s Budget was the tax penalties and rebates based on carbon emissions. Yawn. This was hinted for some time to warm up the industry and the changes are that instead of penalties or rebates of up to $15k, it is up to $20k in the latest talks. Heh

Instead of restructuring the entire COE car-owner-pays system, the govt is rolling out this emission-based carbon tax. Very trendy now to introduce carbon footprint in taxes. WTF. OK before I focus on the merits and crappiness of the car carbon emission tax, let me bitch on what the government did not talk about but should have.

The current COE categories are outdated and should be revamped. There should be a separate COE category for taxis. There should be a separate COE category for green and even diesel cars. There should be a separate COE category for luxury or supercars. This is the way to cool the COE bidding wars, bring down COE prices, push out cab companies in bidding for the COE with private car owners, and regulate the type of cars on the roads, especially if the government is concerned about encouraging green cars e.g. allot a higer quota for green cars.

Also, ARF should not only be based on OMV but also higher weight on the size of the car as well i.e. a 3 litre sauerkraut monster should have a heftier ARF than a 1.6 litre sushi or kimchi sedan because of a specific size surchage on top of the OMV, which is the ball park figure based on car brand, import costs and currency exchange. These much debated ideas were not raised in the Budget at all. So expect COE to be in the $40k range upwards until the next GE as there is nothing new here for drivers.

Back to the emission-based taxes. Schizer, ze Jerman car lobby is revving! The German Chamber of Industry and Commerce started lobbying for a carbon-based tax system in Spore in 2010.  This of course reflected environmental and political preferences in Europe, and more importantly, also because the German car lobby in Spore calculated that they would have a comparative advantage over the Jap and Korean dealers. With the Euro V standards on diesel cars, size for size, diesel cars typically have lower carbon output that petrol ones, and also, VW, Audi, Mercedes and BMW all eager to import diesel variants here, it made sense that a carbon-based tax is adopted sooner than later in Spore from the German car lobby perspective.

Already the traditional Asian players in the car market are being displaced in their rankings. Under the current badly managed and overpriced COE regime, buyers are choosing continental cars as they have a higer OMV compared to Asian makes, that idea of bang for buck since COE premiums are so high. In 2011, BMW, Audi and Merc were the big boys and the humble true people’s car, the Altis was dethroned and dropped to number 4. Gone are the days when Jap cars were the best sellers and consumer prefences have changed since the COE prices went up as its supply dwindled.

With the status quo, the sushi and kimchi car dealers would be eaten alive soon enough by the Teutonic invaders under the new emissions tax environment. Only Toyota stands the best chance in raising its market share by taking advantage of the emissions tax environment with its Prius C. Heh the Japanese hybrid vs German diesel race for the green car market share is about to take place. The only issue is whether the govt is going to have a separate green car COE category. If so, what is the quota and that would really change the game to a large extent. And how any change in diesel duty is going to affect the preference for small diesel cars.

Ahem BTW don’t be fooled by all the crap that diesel cars are cleaner blablabla and that it is about time Euro V cars are recognised for being clean and green. Its German car lobby rhetoric, more or less. Yes they have lower carbon emissions, but they emit more soot and particulate matter aka pollutants, smog that really fracks up your respiratory systems.

Guide Dogs in Spore: Don’t Know Who is the Real Blind One

Try and read the Sunday Times opinion by uber esteemed Tommy Koh on the state of guide dogs for the visually handicapped (we used to call them the blind) in Spore.

WTF, it really sucks to be disabled here. Actually anywhere but for a errrrr first world Spore, it is double whammy sad as we should have progressed as a “civilized” society. There are some retards who are offended by guide dogs. Seriously, dudes. These mutts are usually trained docile labradors and similar doggies, not your snarling badass Cerberus peeing at your feet and then biting your ankles.

Like that story if true, of someone on the bus or MRT asking the blind person and the guide mutt to move away when the able-bodied whiner could have moved away instead. Huh?Apart from the usual asstard man-on-the-street Sporean and foreigner, since we are equal-opportunities bashers, it seems that it is an uphill task for the blind and their dogs. Like come on, how wrong and unpopular can that karma-winning formula be? A nice friendly dog (don’t pet them when they are working you asstards) to help the blind move around.

You know what is sadder, that the Guide Dogs Association of the Blind has a list of friendly businesses. Yessssss. That implies that there are businesses that are Unfriendly. Although by law guide dogs can be brought into makan joints etc, the particular business or dumbfrack taxi or bus driver can kick them out. WTF,  they are guide dogs, not durians. You know what, there are only 2 guide dogs in Spore now. Not 200, not 20 but 2. I don’t know whether is a matter of cost, support or legislation

Lee Hsien Loong & Yakubu

This ministerial pay issue is funny.  On the one side, you have chest-thumping morally righteous people and politicians saying that it’s not enough, must cut deeper etc and if you have a centrist or “this pay-cut ok wat” opinion, will get lambasted left, right and center, and behind.  On the other side you have incumbent politicians, who after GE 2011, seems to be acting like a PlayStation headless chicken controlled by a 10 year-old.

 

The reality is this: there is no lack of people who will want to be a Prime Minister, an Education Minister blablabla for less than 100k a year. I can easily imagine Alex Tan, that gonzo from RP who stood in Ang Mo Kio who will, I am sure, be satisfied to be a PM pro bono even.  Elitist or not, its all just boils down to bloody common sense, these are positions which cannot just go to any person even if they offer to pay for the job and I think many Sporeans also know this.  It is very simple and logical and practical.  BUT if I say this, I will kena slammed as elitist PAP dog or worst racist some more if your English not good.

 

Then there will be pseudo historians who will draw from our hallowed history and say that what about our Founding Fathers? They took peanuts what!  In any other situation, a practical Sporean will say, last time Policeman also wear shorts. Wink wink.  But somehow when it comes to this pay issue, everyone is quiet while the “noble” and “righteous” people come out with one reason after another why the pay must be even lower coz the Founding Fathers did it through personal sacrifice.  All I can say is that other than polis wear shorts last time, wanton mee also only one cent last time. Its relative and stop abusing history ok; it shows an embarrassing lack of historical sensibility.  BUT if I say this, I am a LKY dog. Oopsy.

 

Then there are people who keep saying that even Obama or Sarkozy or Merke is paid less so we should pay even lesser.  If you go ask the great Oscar winner, left-ish Michael Moore, what he thinks of our estimation of how noble US politicians are coz of their “lowly” pay, he will laugh his pants down.  Ever wonder why, despite so many horrific shootings u can still buy a gun and ammo from WalMart? Ever wonder why despite the sub-prime bail-out, Wall Street bankers and traders are still paid exorbitant months of bonuses? Go figure that out.  There is always a price to pay.  And since we are at happy comparisons, why not compare PM pay to Chelsea’s captain John Terry? He earns more than our PM in 8 weeks just by kicking a ball around or should I say chasing a ball?  I think our PM pay is equivalent or maybe even less than Yakubu. BUT if I say this, I am a PAP dog.   Oopsy again.

 

Its high time that one side get off their imagined moral high round and the other side get more focus and balls on this issue.  Minus all the complex mathematics and formulas and such, it boils down to some simple practical considerations:

 

If minister pay is not attractive, all the kilat corporate people will happily stay in their cushy Shenton Way jobs, earning obscene amounts of money, while dumbass pro bono politicians will be running the country “loved” by the people. Wink wink.

 

So in the end, its based on the performance of the politicians. If they perform, its ok. If they don’t perform, we vote them out and wave them the finger. Don’t even bother. And pay plays no part in that.  Simple.  Heh

Piak Wa – Saw Phaik Hwa and What Next for Industry-PAP Ties?

Frak me! The SMRT CEO did an about turn about not resigning and is now exiting. Mind the gap… when she goes. SMRT profits increased 3-fold from $56 mill in 2002, when she joined, to $161.1 million in 2011. SMRT shareholders, please realise that the door that Phaik Hwa exited from has swung backwards and will slam into your face.

Nicely timed before “inconvenient” parliament questions can be asked tomorrow by “inconvenient” WP members, heh, it looks like there was political nudging to make Phaik Hwa eat her words and give up her seat to someone more deserving of it. Errrr, from an irate commuter and not a calculative SMRT shareholder POV. There was public pressure and therefore political pressure, in the recent PAP mood of bending backwards as much as they can to win hearts and minds, on SMRT’s chief driver to let go of the wheel. This sends a not-so subtle signal to Temasek, DBS, SIA blablabla other private companies perceived or actually remotely linked to the Establishment, that the PAP cannot protect them as much as before. Ahem, maybe unless they are family. That said, the resignation was as gracefully face-saving as it could. The news was that Phaik Hwa voiced that she wanted out on December 7, some time before the MRT fiasco. Oh well.

As she was right at the top, Phaik Hwa was not responsible for the severe crippling MRT disruptions in December last year. Shit happens and thankfully so far nobody was injured. But as CEO and right at the top, she was accountable. Should she have resigned? Perhaps, if there was another incident. Or more likely if there was an accident and fatalities. Or simply if investors lost confidence. Heh. But for those 3 MRT disruptions however awful it was? Hmmm.

Still, pleasing commuters/customers/constituents is not that simple. In many ways, politics and business lobbies are intertwined. Spore F1, Ong Being Seng and the govt footing a big part of the bill is one conspiracy theory. This happens everywhere and anywhere. It is just business and a mutually beneficial relationship from Beijing to Berlin. Taking a bigger step further on this platform about the symbiotic ties between them, now that Phaik Hwa was persuaded to exit the train, business lobbies might start to realise that maybe they cannot reply on PAP support as much, and therefore not give PAP support as much. One reason why the SDP Holland-Bt Timah dream team had an epic fail in the last GE was coz they preached left-leaning policies like min wage to industry moguls in districts 9, 10 and 11. Facepalm. Rhetoric that would not appeal to industry movers and shakers, who generally liked the PAP pro-business posturing.

The public should be appeased for now that they got what they wanted – Phaik Hwa was made to resign. Also, PAP’s natural opponents like WP have one less leverage to work on in parliament since the Phaik Hwa card cannot be played as well as before if she had stayed at the driver’s seat. The other losers are shareholders and investors as they lost a profit-churning CEO while SMRT would now be driven by someone else who cannot fix the MRT mechanical problems overnight anyway considering the expected increased stress in train frequency and load in recent years.

MRT. Why You So Like That?

So would SMRT CEO Saw Phaik Hwa resign if another MRT disruption happens within this week, month or quarter? Probably not. Spore does not have a culture of public remorse and political-corporate seppuku. From Orchard Rd and parts of Spore turning into Venice, to MRT trains slowing down to a halt and turning into dark packed tin cans with no air con, move along now dudes.

 

Besides, investors should beware of the mindless rabble complaints about SMRT being too profitable. It is supposed to be profitable as SMRT has obligations to its shareholders, big and small. With her touted vast experience in retail at DFS, she was brought in to make SMRT go into tenancy and retail. She made SMRT profitable so SMRT shareholders from the heartland housewife to the D9 industry mover and shaker would be wary about her leaving the helm to appease public anger. To get a rough idea, SMRT profits Q2 2011- about $7 mill revenue was earned from ads and retail each. Ridership, despite the influx of more immigrants, earned about $8 mill in comparison. Heh. Go check out the revenue from taxis and bus to get a bigger map of the routes SMRT takes to please its shareholders.

 

Back to the gripe. The 3 disruptions last week, not 1 or 2 but 3 fracking frustrating disruptions for the commuter who heeded the advice not to buy cars and rely on public transport, or were actually priced out by the high COEs, made many commuters go Hulk mode and smash MRT train windows. The MRT disruptions were on the new teething Circle and old worn NS lines. Hence, it is hard to pinpoint whether it is an issue of maintenance or not.

 

The bottom line. Disruptions would happen again and it is a matter of when. That’s life. SMRT just has to get its crowd control, apology, compensation and contingency alternative transport song and dance together to make disruptions less shitty. LTA while making disappointed clucking noises with its tongue, is rubbing its hands in glee computing the fine to be slipped under Saw Phaik Hwa’s door. SMRT was fined close to $400k in 2008 coz of a 7-hour disruption in service between Tanah Merah and Pasir Ris. One incident, 4 stations affected. This coming slap for this month’s disruption would turn Phaik Hwa’s face and butt cheeks red. BTW LTA was the one who built and leased the lines to SMRT. Just saying.

 

Sire, Can I have More (errr stamp duty?)

Hmm my lame Oliver Twist take on stamp duty raised for investors esp foreigners (except for those with specific FTA with Spore who are immune to the taxman’s outstretched hand).

Is it a good policy? Depends on whether you are being screwed of coz. If you are a local and buyer of your first or second property,  then it is all good still. Price might even drop 30% as some stakeholders in the property market are trying to scare the govt about a collapse. I don’t think it would collapse as there is still optimism, rental market potential and low interest rates to sustain purchases. Prices would only collapse 30% if there is a recession.

If you are a foreigner, and here “foreigner” means non-PR, wham bam 10% more stamp duty. So their total stamp duty is tiered up to 3% plus the additional 10%. If you are a PR, you are knocked, albeit less hard since the govt wants to root people somewhat with the blue IC, with the usual stamp duty plus 3% more under the new rules if you get your second property onwards. The bottom line, the govt is yet trying to curb demand for investment private property. Sporeans get hit, but not as hard as PR, and non-PR are worst smacked. The stamp duty discrimination is all tiered and rational. About time if you asked me, although some would argue that it is too little, too late.  BTW will anybody argue that foreigners are being discriminated and should have same “human rights” to invest in property as locals? LOL

Cynicism aside about when is discrimination ok and when it is not, should Sporeans looking to buy their second property also be pinched with an additional but lower stamp duty to correct the market better? The govt was trying to strike a balance and alienate as few voters as possible. Firstly, it would erode the govt’s public relations gesture to its voters that foreigners are the ones being discriminated against. Secondly, implicitly Sporeans should be given the leg up in getting investment property to rent out to the steady inflow of foreigners. Hence, that was the reason why only Sporeans buying their third and more property are singled out by the taxman. Whatever.

Anyway, remember that supply side checks were loaded since early last year with the Hong Kong-styled timing-tiered Seller’s Stamp Duty? Seller stamp duty was unheard of in recent times until 2010. The latest round of the seller stamp duty cudgel was swung this year before the GE, to slow down speculation in the private housing market and appease house-hunting voters (at the expense of house-selling voters) e.g. if seller held his property for less than a year, his seller stamp duty was 16% of price or market value whichever is higher.

Really, in the grand plan in my kopitiam economics, foreigners only account for 19% of private property purchase in second half of 2011. Yes the govt noticed the trend that in second half of 2010, that figure was 7%, and wants to slow down the property boom. Hence, the additional stamp duty is not going to crash the property market as it affects foreigners mainly, and any correction would be gradual. If fact, the govt is not doing enough if they want slow down foreigners gaming the property market.

From a xenophobic perspective and worried about foreigners destabilizing the property market and pricing out Sporeans, the additional stamp duty is encouraging, sure, but why no additional seller’s stamp duty on foreigners and PR? Now that would be a kick in the balls, placating Sporeans that the govt cares about Sporeans first. Heh.

Moving further, what about not allowing PR to buy HDB property? PR are still foreigners as they are technically not citizens and did not do NS, more or less depending on their age, sex, gender even, blablabla. So why should they be allowed to buy govt housing? However, pushing out PRs from the resale HDB market and increasing their demand for private property complicates the entire story about Sporeans not being able to afford private and HDB housing. Best looked into at another time. Heh.

Ouch, the Truth Hurts

Well, well, well. Our poor pal Donaldson from New Asia Republic got into trouble lately because of his supposed offensive post about Islam and Muslims. Was it offensive? Hell yes if you are a sensitive Muslim or a NSP politician trying to score uber lame points apologising on behalf of the non-Muslims for remarks made by others.  Nicole before, now Gilbert? Yawn loudly and scratch armpit on NSP opportunism.

Donaldson cheekily added a sign warning that his Facebook posting was flame bait, but some dumbass happily took the chance to snatch that sign up and smash it onto his head. And by doing so, caused more distress to members of their own community as more Muslims are aware of the offensive posting, than if the flame bait was ignored right from day uno. Don’t feed the troll.

So the person who cause more damage and distress was the person who made the offensive posting more controversial and thus viral, not Donaldson who merely made the posting and warned that it was flame bait. Facepalm. If the law was just and poetic, perhaps Amran the Dud should also have the book thrown at him.

We all tip toe gently around Muslims, trying not to offend or startle them, but we usually piss on anyone else publicly as they are not that sensitive about their beliefs ridiculed. Hmm to be fair, some Christians also went berserk with the Last Temptation of Christ and other Hollywood depictions of Jesus. One reason for being apologetic to Muslims here is geopolitical-historical and Spore’s siege narrative, the other is simply it is not politically correct to poke fun at vocal minority groups. Sure, fair enough. However, we don’t usually have that much qualms making fun of gays, fatties, vegetarians, prosperity gospel Christians, Tiongs. Prolly coz we can get away with it. Wink wink. Heh. Double standards is a funny bitch isn’t it and that’s life.

Whether Donaldson was right in terms of internet freedom of expression ala headstrong Jyllands-Posten or wrong in terms of his understanding that he could get away with a clever disclaimer, heh, it doesn’t really matter anymore as the web mob is out to lynch him. It is fashionably politically correct to giddy up on the moral high horse and kick him in the face now with pointy spurs, just like it was trendy politically correct to diss old fogey Harry Lee about his hard truth views on some Muslims early this year. Let’s admit that, and also admit that some people in some religions are just more touchy than others. That’s a fact, even if it might not seem as politically correct to say it aloud.

So the lesson for all of us in the web about some groups being more sensitive than others, akin to not defaming PAP leaders which is something ingrained in all already, don’t slander Islam too.  It’s not worth it.