TR EMERITUS

It made my day to read about our Singapore national football team holding the China team to a 2-2 draw at the National Stadium yesterday. What is even more remarkable is that they came back from 2-0 down at half time to hold China to a draw. China, although unlike Japan or South Korea isn't an Asian football powerhouse, still there are plenty to shout about the result. It was a good result, a satisfaction and a good start and I wish our boys and everyone involved my best wishes. They have shown plenty of grit, determination and heart and for those who have for so long continue to believe in our own talents, stood by them and not imported talents. Shanti Pereira is another one such shining 100% Singaporean star. I say to them to continue having faith in our own people and although the odds are stacked against us very high because of our small population base and our urban lifestyle, still, let's us continue to believe and cheer them and never give up. Heartiest congratulations once more. Think.   Simon Lim    Read More →

“No one should go away thinking that (Singh) will be disqualified as an MP, or disqualified from running in an election. I am not saying it is a guarantee but he is not under any real risk,” so says constitutional law expert Kevin Tan. This is because the charge he faces for lying to a parliamentary committee carries a max fine of $7000 or jail term of up to 3 years, or both. But to be disqualified, the fine per charge has to be not less than $10k (or be sentenced to jail for not less than one year). Pritam is safe. So you can stop holding your breath. Breathe easy. WP would still be in the running for the coming GE, possibly end of this year. But from this saga, which took more than 2.5 year to unravel (from 3 Oct 2021 to March 2024), I have learnt three lessons, two of which are about lies and the last one is about politics. 1) A lie cannot be buried if it smells. This all started with a lie. Ms Khan gave a speech on 3 Aug 2021. She said she had three years ago accompanied a rape victim to the police station. She said an officer made inappropriate remarks about the victim. It however took her nearly three months (1 Nov 2021) to come clean about it, that is, she had lied. Before that, she repeated the lie on 4 Oct 2021. You hope that a lie would go away, but at times, it doesn’t. And when it doesn’t, you are often cornered. That is where you feel the heat up your spine. The stench is often compounded. You are thus forced to cave. A lie like that would definitely smell. It made serious allegations. It is made in a serious setting, amongst parliamentarians. And it forces one to investigate because trust and credibility are at stake, especially concerning an allegation coming from one’s political opponent. 2) The best time to uncover a lie that smells is when you first catch it. I trust such lies are like gremlins. They look harmless, even adorable. You want to keep them as pets, close by your side. But there is a catch. They simply refuse to lie down, play dead and be buried. Gremlins know your soft buttons, just like a lie. It’s a spiralling trap, because you often have to cover a lie with a lie. And they all add up. Once they do, the consequences can be far worse. Coincidentally, gremlins are extremely photosensitive, just like a lie kept as pets. And this quote explains it, “We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark; the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” Lies are like rodents in the attic. In the dark, they come out to play. But once you open the door, and flood in the lights from the hallway, they scamper for their dear lives. By then, it’s too late. And, 3) In politics, nothing is what it seems. After witnessing the rise of Trump, I have come to see virtues as more of a means to an end rather than an end in itself. This is not new, but for it to happen in your lifetime and so blatantly, it makes you sit up and wise up. The judge has to decide for Pritam’s case, that is, did he ask Ms Khan to bring it to the grave or did he give her a long runway to come clean, amidst repeating the lie in October? In other words, is this case where one keeps a gremlin or simply offers grace? Bottomline is, Pritam may very well walk out of the courtroom with more votes than less. Perception is not necessarily based on truth. We are often more beholden to a personality, or what he or she represents, than veracity. The former (personality) is so much more relatable (and believable) than the latter (veracity). You may say that we are entitled to our own opinions but not entitled to our own facts. Yet, when a country is seriously divided, what matters in politics is the former not the latter. But I guess we have to confront the times, by anchoring our center on all things that matter, without running blindly around the periphery.   Micheal Han    Read More →

Gunmen have attacked a concert hall on the fringes of Moscow, killing at least 40 people and wounding 100 more, Russian security services say. At least four attackers clad in camouflage gear took part in the attack, in the north-west suburb of Krasnogorsk, BBC-verified video shows. Crocus City Hall was about to host a rock concert when the gunmen burst into the foyer and then the theatre itself. Much of the building was engulfed by fire and part of the roof collapsed. ISIS has since claimed to be responsible for the attack on Friday night. Moscow has since updated the death figure to 60 and still counting.    Read More →