How to eradicate poverty in Singapore

I was under fire for being not empathetic when I said it was better to be poor in Singapore than in other countries. I continue to stand by that statement.

Nonetheless I think the wealth gap in Singapore was much more well managed in the 80s than the 90s Singapore Inc. We are trying to reverse some of those policies now but it will be tough as long as there is obsessive fixation on GDP growth and ministers pay being pegged to the wealthy professionals rather than median.

Prospering together is always a better solution in the long term than benefitting a few priviledged, but it takes much more hard work

(04-11-2013, 12:06 PM)opmi Wrote: my friend is always commenting that some of his students on Financial Assistance, carries Iphone.

social workers also say that some low income families has big LCD TV..

Poor in SG is not destitute. Destitute is living in slums by the sludgy river with threat of eviction from Govt.

(04-11-2013, 12:35 PM)Temperament Wrote: The poor in Singapore is of course so much better than the poor in Third WORLD Countries. But the poor in Singapore have to compare with the other better off people in Singapore not the Third World Countries. So you can say the poor in Singapore may be considered rich in Third World Countries.

Voices in Parliament can also be played the other way because they can be easily influenced/manipulated from Black to White by strong opposing party who is not upright. You will be surprised how many of the population just blindly believed in it. In Taiwan I feel this actually lowered the living standard.

Therefore i feel the key to reduce poverty is to reduce Corruption. This will lift the average up but will never eliminates poverty because the term is relative else we going back to communist era.

The poor in sg at least are not deprive of education. They still stands a chance to become middle class in e next 20 yrs.
If u r born in a poor, u likely hungrier for opportunity and money.

Knowledge is the BEST leveller. Not $.

Please invest in it!

(04-11-2013, 02:19 PM)WolfT Wrote: The poor in sg at least are not deprive of education. They still stands a chance to become middle class in e next 20 yrs.
If u r born in a poor, u likely hungrier for opportunity and money.

Of coz the opportunity and money must come from legal means. There are people (both well-to-do and poor) who are desperate to try all means to get richer.

No matter what is the income level, there will always be the bottom 20%, or bottom 5%. The prices of goods within a country will be set based on a general acceptable level for the whole population, which will definitely be considered as 'expensive' for this group of people. So even if the bottom 20% can be earning a higher pay then now, they will still be consider poor. There is no end to this matter.

So, how can one really eradicate poverty?

$ is also very powderful to help the sub-normal intelligence people or disadvantage people to level up.
This reminds me of the Australian without arms and legs yet can appears as an ambassador of "Life is what you make out of it" in news and TV. He is even somebody Father.

When i saw him for the first time on TV,
i told my wife Australia is an amazing country. i wonder whether he can be like this if he was born in Singapore?
Sorry, if i offended someone's sensibility.
You see though LOVE makes the World goes round, "No MONEY NO TALK" is also real.

(04-11-2013, 03:56 PM)Temperament Wrote: You see though LOVE makes the World goes round, "No MONEY NO TALK" is also real.

I agree, uncle temperament.

Nowadays, people tend to value themselves and others based on the amount of wealth they have.....

Quote:i told my wife Australia is an amazing country. i wonder whether he can be like this if he was born in Singapore?

Why not, we have one blind lady mathematician.

http://ww1.math.nus.edu.sg/News%20Archiv...20Ling.htm

Quote:Her own family's monthly income is slightly more than $1,000, she said. Her mother, 56, works as a hawker's assistant. Her 64-year-old father is retired and is beginning to lose his sight because he also has glaucoma. Miss Yeo, who is the middle child, has a younger sister aged 17 who is a student, and an older married brother, 30, who works as a technical officer.

(04-11-2013, 04:06 PM)yeokiwi Wrote:

Quote:i told my wife Australia is an amazing country. i wonder whether he can be like this if he was born in Singapore?

Why not, we have one blind lady mathematician.

http://ww1.math.nus.edu.sg/News%20Archiv...20Ling.htm

Quote:[quote]
Her own family's monthly income is slightly more than $1,000, she said. Her mother, 56, works as a hawker's assistant. Her 64-year-old father is retired and is beginning to lose his sight because he also has glaucoma. Miss Yeo, who is the middle child, has a younger sister aged 17 who is a student, and an older married brother, 30, who works as a technical officer.

Quote:"I have readers, some of them friends, some graduate students whom I pay to read lecture notes or books, record them into MP3 files, and e-mail them to me. "

From the above, do i have to go further. i think she should have all the support of the state. So in Singapore, if you can make it even though you are very disadvantaged in one way or another, not only it's really amazing you are marvellous too.
My point is it seems we are a very "Meritocratic Society".
Everyone for himself.

(04-11-2013, 03:52 PM)NTL Wrote:

(04-11-2013, 02:19 PM)WolfT Wrote: The poor in sg at least are not deprive of education. They still stands a chance to become middle class in e next 20 yrs.
If u r born in a poor, u likely hungrier for opportunity and money.

Of coz the opportunity and money must come from legal means. There are people (both well-to-do and poor) who are desperate to try all means to get richer.

No matter what is the income level, there will always be the bottom 20%, or bottom 5%. The prices of goods within a country will be set based on a general acceptable level for the whole population, which will definitely be considered as 'expensive' for this group of people. So even if the bottom 20% can be earning a higher pay then now, they will still be consider poor. There is no end to this matter.

So, how can one really eradicate poverty?

Not possible to eradicate poverty, lets not bluff ourselves!
What we really do to help them is by giving them chances and avenue to upgrade their mindset and skillset and hope they can get out of the proverty cycle.