Friday, March 16, 2007
Wag the dog
So it appears that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed has admitted to being part of the plot to destroy the twin towers and commited various nefarious acts. Is it pure coincidence that the revelations come at a time when the Bush administration is besieged by various charges of wrongdoing? Anyone willing to bet that Osama bin Laden will somehow be found and brought to "justice" as 2008 draws nearer? Conspiracy theorists, get to work!
Thursday, March 15, 2007
Jack is Back!
No, not Jack Sparrow, the other one!
You Don't Know Jack ranks as one of my all-time favorite games. For those unfamiliar with the genre it's basically a quiz with a witty yet discombobulating presenter. And now, it is available as a Flash game... so turn up your speakers and check it out!
You Don't Know Jack ranks as one of my all-time favorite games. For those unfamiliar with the genre it's basically a quiz with a witty yet discombobulating presenter. And now, it is available as a Flash game... so turn up your speakers and check it out!
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Friday, March 09, 2007
Absurd Singaporeans
The typical Singaporean psyche to problem-solving is unique. Any difficult situation or social ill should first be addressed by taxes, tariffs and tolls. Thus, the running joke about Singapore as a "fine" city.
Recently the ever-controversial topic of car prices and their effects on traffic flow patterns came up in conversation. Apparently some of the commentators believe that the current low prices of cars have led to an increase in car owners, therefore contributing to road congestion. Their solution? Why, raise car prices of course! The reasoning is that with the higher price of cars, they will be able to out-spend their competitors and thus assure themselves of a "rightful" place on the road.
I was incredulous that these highly intelligent and well-regarded individuals would suddenly lose their minds and come up with such a stupid idea.
It is not unusual for an individual with high net worth to be the registered owner of 5, 10, 25 or even more cars. So you're Joe Shmoe who needs to commute from Loyang to Tuas every day, and you're up against Richie Rich who is angling to complete his Ferrari collection. There's one COE left on the market. Guess who's getting it?
Car prices in Singapore are already artificially inflated through customs duty and taxes. Additionally, the COE system has proven to be flawed as a way for controlling the car population, since that does not address usage and is simply a flat tax, as explained in the paragraph above. Thus the raison detre and implementation of the ERP scheme, which is sound in theory. The only problem is that existing car owners have been subsidizing the ongoing costs without reaping the benefits of the ERP system, leading to discontent.
In the meantime, in typical fashion, the powers-that-be have, you guessed it, raised ERP prices on congested roads during peak hours. So existing car owners are screwed over twice, a problem that is essentially created by ourselves (because we're the ones who asked for the COE and ERP system in the first place. *ahem*).
So there you have it, the current state of commuting in Singapore. Surprising? Hardly. We're just a nation of pampered whiners.
Recently the ever-controversial topic of car prices and their effects on traffic flow patterns came up in conversation. Apparently some of the commentators believe that the current low prices of cars have led to an increase in car owners, therefore contributing to road congestion. Their solution? Why, raise car prices of course! The reasoning is that with the higher price of cars, they will be able to out-spend their competitors and thus assure themselves of a "rightful" place on the road.
I was incredulous that these highly intelligent and well-regarded individuals would suddenly lose their minds and come up with such a stupid idea.
It is not unusual for an individual with high net worth to be the registered owner of 5, 10, 25 or even more cars. So you're Joe Shmoe who needs to commute from Loyang to Tuas every day, and you're up against Richie Rich who is angling to complete his Ferrari collection. There's one COE left on the market. Guess who's getting it?
Car prices in Singapore are already artificially inflated through customs duty and taxes. Additionally, the COE system has proven to be flawed as a way for controlling the car population, since that does not address usage and is simply a flat tax, as explained in the paragraph above. Thus the raison detre and implementation of the ERP scheme, which is sound in theory. The only problem is that existing car owners have been subsidizing the ongoing costs without reaping the benefits of the ERP system, leading to discontent.
In the meantime, in typical fashion, the powers-that-be have, you guessed it, raised ERP prices on congested roads during peak hours. So existing car owners are screwed over twice, a problem that is essentially created by ourselves (because we're the ones who asked for the COE and ERP system in the first place. *ahem*).
So there you have it, the current state of commuting in Singapore. Surprising? Hardly. We're just a nation of pampered whiners.
Saturday, March 03, 2007
Ferrari F50 GT
Meant to be raced in the prestigious Le Mans 24 Hours, only 3 were ever built. Here's a dyno run...
More info on Wikipedia.
More info on Wikipedia.
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