Lee Kuan Yew dies at 91

[aelf]

We have differing concepts of civil liberties. When I say civil liberties, I mean things that in authoritarian states usually lack to varying degrees. Mainly the freedom of speaking against the government.
You're talking about corruption and its terrible effects on society, on which I wholly agree. However, corruption has nothing to do with the system of government. Singapore is indeed a case of an "unfree democracy" where corruption is virtually absent (it's like 3rd in CPI)

Eh, that is not true. A kind of corruption happens regularly here that is legitimised and therefore not reported. Granted, it's not terribly harmful, at least in the short term.

 

[christos200]

While democracies have zero corruption and the politicians are never ever bribed nor do they employ their voters in the public sector in exchange for votes.

 

[aelf]

You are a master of putting together straws in the guise on a man and then attacking it.

 

[Crime Doesn't Pay]

Eh, that is not true. A kind of corruption happens regularly here that is legitimised and therefore not reported. Granted, it's not terribly harmful, at least in the short term.

Are you referring to the insanely high salaries of the SG politicians?

 

[aelf]

Are you referring to the insanely high salaries of the SG politicians?

That's not so much corruption as an abuse of power. AFAIK, the parliament votes on its own salaries and the salaries of Cabinet ministers.

But the biggest local companies are what is termed here as Government-Linked Companies (GLCs). There is a revolving door of top civil servants and their relatives helming or holding high positions in these companies. And, as you can imagine, government policies tend to favour them as well.

The government doesn't escape scrutiny or criticism entirely for these relationships. There is often some kind of grumbling about what is happening, especially when news break that these companies are not doing well or are not doing their jobs well (such as in the operation of public transportation in recent years). But now with LKY's death, I think these issues can easily be swept under the carpet.

In fact, I think the opposition will be crushed in next year's elections.

 

[Snorrius]

In fact, I think the opposition will be crushed in next year's elections.

Good. I hope to visit Singapore another time, and I do not want to find it trashed by Leftists.

 

[Cutlass]

I am just telling you: black is black, white is white. It is you who believes otherwise, so when someone says how things are, you are naturally amazed. But it is not a rocket science to add two and two and come to conclusion that democracy and egalitarianism do not go well with liberty. It just takes a little thought.

What you mean is that it takes you a lot of drugs. Exactly what liberty do you think people have under an authoritarian government that they don't have under a democratic one?

 

[Plotinus]

I really don't think that the European left-right dichotomy maps very well onto Asian politics. The PAP is, in western terms, left in some ways and right in others.

 

[aelf]

Good. I hope to visit Singapore another time, and I do not want to find it trashed by Leftists.

Oh, I think it might be good too. You see, that's the funny thing about democracy - the people can have what they want. Maybe it will work out; maybe they will be happy. If that's the case, good for them.

But maybe they will end up unhappy. Maybe they will then begin to clamour for change. And that would be a lesson well-learned.

 

[christos200]

Typical leftist propaganda. Nice to talk about liberties and human rights and an utopia while having no realistic solutions to the world problems and only criticizing others. When you have formulated solutions to the world problems instead of just talking about people's rights in a generic way and leading them to bankruptcy (see: Venezuela and possibly Greece), then you can criticize other governments for being authoritarian.

 

[Traitorfish]

TIL all leftists have identical politics.

Presumably Stalin just had Trotsky killed for a bet.

 

[jackelgull]

Typical leftist propaganda. Nice to talk about liberties and human rights and an utopia while having no realistic solutions to the world problems and only criticizing others. When you have formulated solutions to the world problems instead of just talking about people's rights in a generic way and leading them to bankruptcy (see: Venezuela and possibly Greece), then you can criticize other governments for being authoritarian.

Lefties have solutions, many of them. Some are good some are not. You obviously have no interest in learning about any of them. As for autocracy, ultimately, it allows societies to dodge responsibility for their leader's actions.

Self determination is a keystone for success, and the average democracy is better at providing that to its citizens than an autocracy.

 

[Tee Kay]

We have differing concepts of civil liberties. When I say civil liberties, I mean things that in authoritarian states usually lack to varying degrees. Mainly the freedom of speaking against the government.
You're talking about corruption and its terrible effects on society, on which I wholly agree. However, corruption has nothing to do with the system of government.

Yes it does. A society with a good measure of civil liberties empowers citizens to fight against government and corporate corruption or at least speak up against it.

Singapore, where an authoritarian state coexists with a society (relatively) free of damaging levels of corruption, is not the rule, it's an exception.

 

[Crime Doesn't Pay]

That's not so much corruption as an abuse of power.

I guess I use the word corruption more loosely than you do.