This weblog was held in storage for a lot of days as a result of I used to be questioning if I ought to publish it.
It’s bordering on being political and it’s one thing which many individuals in all probability have very robust opinions about.
Anyway, I made a decision to make the leap.
In The Straits Occasions on 4 March, Chua Mui Hoong wrote that Singapore was “at a juncture when the inner contradictions of its hyper-competitive system have gotten obvious, inflicting a lot angst, from the low to center to high-income residents.”
“They fear if they’ll attain the necessities of recent life, a house, job, faculty for his or her youngsters and caregiving for frail relations.
“Those that are rich, nonetheless fear about entry to good colleges and whether or not their youngsters can do as nicely in a sport they themselves excelled in.”
This, plus what Pritam Singh mentioned in Parliament about how “two Singapores” may presumably emerge, received me running a blog.
There was an enormous dialogue concerning Singapore’s earnings inequality and the suggestion was that Singapore’s earnings inequality subject was worsening.
Nonetheless, that’s in all probability extra a preferred and faulty notion than actuality.
Singapore’s earnings inequality has been declining.
The Gini coefficient decreased from 0.478 in 2012 to 0.437 in 2022.
Lawrence Wong shared the outcomes of ongoing efforts to uplift lower-wage employees.
Decrease-wage employees had seen larger earnings progress than these incomes greater than the median earnings within the final 5 years.
What’s my opinion?
There’ll at all times be earnings inequality.
Arduous fact.
It’s exhausting for me to just accept {that a} cleaner needs to be paid as a lot as a physician or perhaps a highschool instructor in a capitalist society, for instance.
In fact, in a communist nation, equal “pay” needs to be anticipated.
So, will we wish to reside in a communist nation?
I do know I do not.
Then, there’s this idea of “necessities of recent life” which Chua Mui Hoong talked about within the newspaper article.
I’ve blogged about wants and needs earlier than many occasions.
We solely want a lot cash in life.
The remaining is for displaying off.
If we maintain our wants easy and our desires few, our life will “mainly” be higher, irrespective of how a lot cash we make.
The issue begins when many issues which aren’t important get categorized as “necessities of recent life.”
Want a house?
What a few HDB flat and even an Govt Condominium?
What a few neighborhood faculty?
Want healthcare?
What a few authorities polyclinic or hospital?
In my final go to to the physician within the polyclinic a 20 minutes stroll from my house, I paid $20 when the precise value was about $80.
Sure, my medical invoice was about 75% sponsored and I’m not even a senior citizen (but.)
There may be an over-emphasis on earnings in the case of measuring monetary nicely being.
Severely.
Should individuals earn much more cash to be wealthy?
I’ve a weblog that claims common earnings employees may be wealthy too.
I’ve a weblog that shares a reader’s expertise on how you can have extra passive earnings than “richer” associates.
If we spend as a lot as we make, it would not matter if we’re excessive earnings people as a result of we are going to at all times be “poor.”
It is not how a lot cash we make that determines if we’re wealthy or poor.
It’s how a lot cash we maintain.
There was a examine completed in a complicated nation that confirmed how 40% of higher center earnings households had been residing paycheck to paycheck in that nation.
They habitually spent as a lot cash as they made or greater than what they made.
How you can be financially higher off like that?
Then, there’s the problem of assigning blame.
Actually, there needs to be a higher emphasis on taking possession in the case of our monetary nicely being or the shortage of it.
As you’ll be able to inform from the video, I’m proud to be Singaporean and pleased with our CPF system.
I just like the CPF system as a result of it’s a system the place the federal government helps those that assist themselves.
I do not like as a lot the best way the federal government has been giving out free cash in recent times.
Nonetheless, I’m very a lot conscious that there are low earnings households which genuinely do want some monetary aid.
Nonetheless, if the federal government retains doing it, then, it would foster emotions of entitlement amongst Singaporeans who, I really feel, may be fairly ungrateful at occasions.
Actually, I don’t assume Singapore is such a horrible place in the case of financial points.
Do not speak about Pakistan or Sri Lanka.
I feel we’re even higher off in Singapore than in the united statesA. in the case of financial points.
In fact, Singapore just isn’t excellent however waving a banner that implies Singapore may cut up aside due to rising earnings inequality is simply malicious.
The P.A.P. authorities in all probability wouldn’t say lots of the issues I’ve mentioned on this weblog as a result of they have to take into consideration profitable the subsequent election.
It may value them some swing voters, I think.
I do not anticipate this weblog to do nicely and it may even get me flamed.
Nonetheless, very long time common readers know that this can be a subject that I really feel strongly about and I simply have to get it off my chest.