Hi Sam, I'll start. Singapore is a small island nation. Like other island nations, it seems to have a large propensity for paranoia, perhaps very justifiably. There seems to be intense competition between Singapore and its former parent nation Malaysia. This is not helped by the fact that Singapore buys most of its water from Malaysia. Malaysia periodically threatens Singapore at the water valve when politics between the two nations are at loggerheads. Malaysia is a multicultural Islamic nation that has laws which preferentially treat the local indigenous peoples. This grates on the sensibilities of some of the non-indigenous (read Chinese heritage) Malay. Many Singaporeans have immigrated from Malaysia for improved economic opportunities.
On a more personal level, I have sensed from some of my Singaporean friends a desire for greater self-control over earned assets. Unlike the US's "social security system" Singapore has an apparently solvent program of retirement savings accounts. It seems to fester in the consciences of some that these monies, already earned, are held hostage beyond these individual's control for their own good. This sense of lack of freedom is begrudgingly accepted as part of the price for their rising middle class status.
And don't ever get them started on cars! The government controls this aspect too. Individuals have to purchase at auction I believe, the right to acquire and possess an automobile. Depending on the relative prosperity of the times, this variable cost can range from nothing to S$50,000ish. This is not a license, that comes later and costs several thousands more also. This is just a paper document that grants one the right to go forth and purchase. I recall a friend recently lamenting that he paid S$50K for such a right just before the onset of the Asian Crisis. Six months later and he could have saved almost this entire amount, the pain of lost money! On top of all this, the last time I reviewed the used car ads in The Straits Times, I was absolutely shocked at the price tags these garnered.
When these guys come over here to California for work and they see the prices for used cars, they act like they've died and gone to heaven. Unfortunately there is no alternative, for Singapore contains over 2 million peoples most all working, in a place the size of Lake Tahoe. If they could all go out and buy cars, well the island would become one giant parking lot. Fortunately alternatives are plentiful and priced very competitively. Taxis abound, and the bus/light rail is well integrated and excellently maintained. You can get to anywhere on the island with an MRT card, and almost as fast as by private car but this doesn't entirely ameliorate the sense of lack of freedom. |
