Beware of People Who Tell You It's Easy To Make Money in MLM!

The biggest problem with ALL MLM's lies within the business model itself. Meaning that success in MLM is ALWAYS based upon the recruitment of other people. In the end, it is about the business "opportunity" and the promoting of such, more so than the actual product.

For this reason, the business eventually cannibalizes itself as each person in the company (crossline for you) ends up becoming your direct competitor. Within time
your market universe is eaten up. More so now that there are about 400+ MLM companies in Singapore. An example of this would be to take ANY BUSINESS in your local town. Any business. In this example lets take an AUTO DETAILER. You pay him to detail your car and then...

..he pitches you to BECOME AN AUTO DETAILER TOO!

Now, there are two auto detailers in your town. Him and you. In a few months there will be hundreds and then thousands. Pretty soon auto detailers will all be working for $1 an hour... hence is the case with MLM.

I know people who are pro MLM will argue this with me till they are blue in the face but fact of the matter is this... just because a very small group of people make money in MLM does NOT mean it is a viable business model. As far as I am concerned MLM is a flawed business model which should be eradicated off the face of the
earth. And I say this as someone who has earned very nice four figure checks from MLM in the past.

Why would I ever quit?

GOOD QUESTION with an even better answer...

In MLM you are NEVER selling a product (ultimately) you are selling an opportunity... a dream. I found that for every 10 people I recruited 1.5 would do anything and an even smaller percentage would have what it would take. What made me quit was one morning when I was shaving and looking at myself in the mirror.

I thought to myself...

I am signing up people who I KNOW CAN'T do it. They just don't have the skills to do it (never have and never will). Yet, I tell them "You can do it".

I am lying...

I know in my heart they would be better off painting houses or detailing cars or.. in some cases... working a job.

I know people will argue and say (like my upline) "if you believe in free enterprise you can't take away the opportunity to fail from someone!".

What a great argument I thought!

But there is a big difference between taking away the opportunity to fail from someone and...

"Letting them jump in the boxing ring with Mike Tyson!"

I have been in MLM since I was 35 and I am self employed full time since 1997. It is hard work constantly recuiting people. And more so doing free seminars where you hand out free samples of your product. You get home around 10 or 11 pm. Most new recruits are lazy and they do not want to work. Other people work hard for a few weeks and then quit. Only a few stick it out. So the turn over is unreal.

Product is usually over priced to pay all the levels. The man at the top of the pyramid was making a quarter of a mil, the level underneath about six figures, under that were people like me making 50+, and under me were thousands of people most making a tiny amount.

What I hated anout MLM was auto-ship. There was this guy who was doing MLM for years that had a garage full of unsold product because he had to make quota every month. SCARY!
It is like every month you had to move hundreds of dollar in product and that is not easy.

I know people will NOT want to hear this (especially those in MLM currently) but the majority of our society is NOT fit to be in ANY BUSINESS. They simply do NOT have what it takes to be self employed and run a business. That's why I got tired of personally sponsoring people (or helping my downline sign up people) who I knew would NEVER make it in MLM in a million years. In Fact, they would be better off running a day care business or selling cookies at a garage sale.

Network marketing is a business of networking... many people get in and all they think about is the huge checks they saw at a meeting yet...

They NEVER think about what is actually required DAY AFTER DAY to get to that big check. Network marketing means N-E-T-W-O-R-K-I-N-G.... this means talking to people. It means being on the phone all day long. Day after day. IT takes a certain person to do it and it is definitely NOT for everyone.

I still have friends who make 6 figure incomes in network marketing today. They will tell you a different story about the business than I. I guess it was easy for me to quit because I never really needed the money. I already had a decent income. In fact, I make more money from other businesses and investment rather than MLM. In the end... attrition rate was high for those who didn't make money quitted. Also, $10,000wasn't worth it for me to tell someone else how to lose $1,000 a whole lot of the time.

If I would have taken all the time I put in MLM and focused it on my own business there is no doubt that I would already be a millionaire today.

MY ADVICE TO EVERYONE...

Stay away from MLM. There are way too many other great opportunities out there for you. People LOVE MLM because they don't have to think or create anything (two things people don't like to do these days).

What a rant... My .02 cents.

Bottomline: If you really wanted to work on MLM, my suggestion is that you get a job first. Select an MLM company with proven reputation on products and payout of commissions on time. Probably an online one as it will not take up much of your time. Learn about internet marketing and recruit distributors and customers using the internet rather than spending all your time meeting up people. Choose a company where you like and will continue to take the products even though you are not making money.

Heart Attack & Warm Water 心臟病發作與喝溫開水

An article by my friend Dr Yeung



心臟病發作與喝溫開水

The Chinese and Japanese drink hot tea with their meals, not cold water, maybe it is time we adopt their drinking habit while eating.

中國人和日本人吃飯的時候喝熱茶，而不是喝冰開水，我們應該學習中國人和日本人的飲食習慣。

It is nice to have a cup of cold drink after a meal.. However, the cold water will solidify the oily stuff that you have just consumed. It will slow down the digestion. Once this 'sludge' reacts with the acid, it will break down and be absorbed by the intestine faster than the solid food. It will line the intestine. Very soon, this will turn into fats and lead to cancer. It is best to drink hot soup or warm water after a meal.

吃過飯之後喝一杯冰冷的飲料的確很舒服，然而，冷開水會使你剛剛吃下肚的油膩膩的食物凝結在一起，而且會使胃腸的消化作用變慢，一旦這一大坨像爛泥的東西碰到胃酸，就會分解而很快地被腸子吸引，它會附著在腸壁上，沒多久它就會變成脂肪，而導致癌症，所以說，吃過飯之後最好還是喝一碗熱湯或一杯溫開水。

Common Symptoms Of Heart Attack...

心臟病發作的一般徵兆



A serious note about heart attacks - You should know that not every heart attack symptom is going to be the left arm hurting . Be aware of intense pain in the jaw line.

請你特別注意：並不是所有心臟病發作的時候都會左臂疼痛，你倒是要留意你頸項的劇烈疼痛。

You may never have the first chest pain during the course of a heart attack. Nausea and intense sweating are also common symptoms. 60% of people who have a heart attack while they are asleep do not wake up. Pain in the jaw can wake you from a sound sleep. Let's be careful and be aware. The more we know, the better chance we could survive.

心臟病發作的時候不一定會胸口疼痛，而噁心和猛烈的盜汗才是心臟病發作時常見的徵候，有60%的心臟病在睡夢中發作而患者因此一覺不醒，頸項疼痛常常會把你從熟睡中醒過來，所以要特別小心，我們懂得越多，活命的機會就越大。

A cardiologist says if everyone who reads this message sends it to 10 people, you can be sure that we'll save at least one life. Read this & send to a friend.

一位心臟病專科醫生說，如果每一個讀到這個資訊的人都把它轉寄給十個朋友，至少可以救活一個人，所以，請你仔細閱讀並且把它轉寄給你的朋友！

April 13, 2009.
Dr. Yeung

Personal Note:
I am regularly taking heart supplement to strengthen my heart against heart ailments. One of the product which is effective for me is LHN 'HeartFast'

Below is a blood test done by Professor Peter Josling, the creator of 'HeartFast' forumulation on the effects on the human blood after taking 'Heartfast'.



Support Your Cardiovascular Health Naturally With HeartFast!

What Normal Red Blood Cells Should Look Like



On Clinic Arrival, Our Subjects Blood Looks Like The Vast Majority Of The Populations Blood Below



Now Lok At The Same Blood Immediately After HeartFast



And After Ten Minutes




Blood After Two Capsules A Day Of HeartFast For 30 Days



What's In HeartFast that makes it so effective?

•180mg Allisure® Allicin Powder
◦Modest Vasodilator
◦Immune Booster
◦Cholesterol and Blood Pressure Reducer
◦Blood cleanser
◦Circulation Stimulator
◦Virtually NO Side effects

•150mg Omega 3 , 6 Powder (fish oil)
◦Reduce risk of Coronary Heart Disease
◦Stimulates circulation
◦Reduces blood pressure
◦Reduces Triglycerides
◦Reduce risk of heart attack
◦No major side effects with massive doses.

.100mg L-Arginine base
◦Reduce risk of heart disease
◦Improve immune function
◦Decrease blood pressure
◦Improve blood supply to peripheral circulation
◦Improve healing time of internal organs
◦Small dose reduces side effect profile

•20mg Cayenne Pepper◦Reduces cardiovascular disease
◦Reduces platelet aggregation
◦Increases fibrinolytic activity
◦Improves circulation significantly
◦Reduces blood fats and cleans arteries
◦Low dose minimizes side effect profile

So how much HeartFast do I take?
The normal daily dose is 1-2 capsules taken with your main meal of the day.
Can be taken orally in capsule form OR added to any food you enjoy!
It's unique combination achieves synergy in small doses.
The maximum dose is 6 capsules per day, split or added to beans!

Don't believe me, try it yourself. You can order 'HeartFast' at:

http://ssl14.securesrv.com/lhnstore/index.asp?id=24&sponsor=2280241#24

Preventing Food Poisoning - The Diarrhoea Killer!

The mass food poisoning outbreak involving an Indian rojak stall at the Geylang Serai temporary market has claimed 2 dealths, 154 casualties, 48 hospitalized and 122 rats.

What exactly causes diarrhoea and how to prevent it?

What to do immediately if you suspect you get it?

When someone gets diarrhoea, sometimes the solution is so easy, we wonder why anyone has to suffer. Here's an remedy used by older folks in those days where medication is not readily availiable.

The secret is in rice water.

This is already known in this region. Ask your maids -- Sri Lankan, Indonesian, Filipina and they would know about it. My Malaysian relatives know about it. (My mother) knew about it.

When Dr Albert Winsemius came to Singapore for a farewell and thank you dinner in his honour, he brought along his wife Aly and his granddaughter, Jolijn. Both women came down with very bad gastroenteritis. They saw the doctor who gave them medication. It was slow to work. Mother boiled some rice in lots of water and went to their hotel with two 1.5L bottles of rice water. I cringed in shame at the offer of this folk remedy, which seemed so primitive to me. Never heard of this cure before.

To my surprise, it worked, and they were even able to go out for dinner the next day. Both were exclaiming how the rice water did the trick of making them well again. Well, lucky it worked, I thought to myself. I was discussing this some years back with Kim Ng, the ex-matron of KK Hospital. She said, yes, that is what Professor Wong Hock Boon, the notable paediatrician teaches. I was shocked and made some comment how could he? It was common knowledge so what had he to do with it?

Many months later, I regretted laughing at it. Dr Christina Shanta Emmanuel, who is the CEO of...uh, which group I have forgotten, either National Health Group, or Polyclinics, or whatever.. regarded me seriously when I brought up the topic like it was good fun. She said that Prof Wong Hock Boon had presented a paper on it at some conference after he had done clinical trials. Then his results were published in the Lancet, the Medical Journal all doctors read. In fact, said Shanta, he was credited for saving the lives of 2 million African babies by this method. I am impressed.

It is rice water and not rice, that does the trick. I have found it effective again and again. You take a handful of rice and boil it in a large saucepan with lots of water. Like three or four large glasses. Then you cool that and drink the water. If you are in a hurry to relievethe ailing person, take the saucepan off the fire and dunk it in a frying pan or basin of cool water with ice cubes if necessary. This gives the patient a chance to drink the rice water sooner and cure himself or herself sooner. When drinking the rice water, make sure there is lots of it.

You have to tell the patient that enough water must go in to line your guts from throat to other end, all 10 to 12 metr es of it. If you take rice, it stays in the stomach. If you take broth, some of it may go into the small intestine. But if you take rice water, it will carry rice grains to every inch of your small and large intestine to the end where the problem is. How does it work? Even Prof Wong Hock Boon doesn't know. Read the attached file. Or go to (*http://rehydrate.org/dd/dd06.htm#page2*)

It is good to pass on the news to everyone you know because the complaint is so common and people suffer unnecessarily. You would be doing your friends a great favour to relieve them of their misery when the occasion arises.

So much for old folks remedy. Here are the facts on diarrhoea:

A person's life is in danger if there are several watery stools within an hour or if there is blood in the faeces. Immediate help from a trained health worker is needed.

Person suspected of having diarrhoea with the following symptoms should immediately seek help from a trained health worker:

. passes several watery stools in one or two hours
· passes blood in the faeces
· vomits frequently
· has a fever
· is extremely thirsty
· does not want to drink
· refuses to eat
· has sunken eyes
· looks weak or is lethargic
· has had diarrhoea for more than one week.

If the patient has any of these signs, help from a trained health worker is needed urgently. In the meantime, the patient should be given ORS solution or other liquids. If the patient passes several watery stools in one or two hours and vomits, there is cause for alarm – these are possible signs of cholera. Cholera can kill its victims in a matter of hours. Seek medical help immediately.

Cholera can spread throughout the community quickly through contaminated water or food. Cholera usually occurs in situations where there is poor sanitation and overcrowding. There are four steps to be taken to limit the spread of cholera or diarrhoea:

1. Dispose of all faeces in a latrine or toilet or bury them
2. Wash hands with soap or ash and water after contact with faeces
3. Use safe drinking water. Wash, peel or cook all foods

One of the effective supplement I used to take whenever I suspect of getting diarrhoea is Garlic. Here's some research articles on Garlic:

http://www.allicinfacts.com/allicin03p.htm

However, not all brands of garlic are effective but I am taking one particular brand which contains huge amount of Allisure's Allicin:

http://ssl14.securesrv.com/lhnstore/index.asp?sponsor=2280241

So remember to carry a bottle along and pop two or three capsules of Alligin whenever you suspect of having taken or going to take unclean food.

Bad Bad Habits

A habit is any action that we have performed so often that it becomes almost an involuntary response. If we consider this habit to be undesirable then we may label it a "bad habit". People spend countless hours and dollars each year attempting to break these bad habits and often do not have any success. Why? Because there is no magic bullet. Change is hard work and there is no short cut to achieving it. The steps a person needs to take, however, can be very simply outlined. To effect a change in habits, one needs to bring the action back into the realm of consciousness and regain the ability to make choices.

Just the other day, I saw a China couple throwing down a NTUC supermarket shopping trolley from a bridge down a river while visiting a friend in Paisr Ris Street 52. I shouted at them to stop but was too late. When I confronted them, the China man raised his voice asking me to mind my own business. He is quite muscular and turned aggressive while the woman tries to refrain him. Needless to say, I was very angry and told them that I wanted to report them to the police. The China woman then pulled the man and both of them moved away briskly. The man still mumbled words of dissatisfaction at me while they were leaving the place.

I did not stop them further as I am afraid if I do so I might end up fighting with him. By the way, I hold a 2nd Dan in unharmed combat after training for the past 15 years (didn't want to mention the school of martial art) and have had quite a number of street fighting encounters while overseas (most of them robbery cases). Thank God most of the cases the robbers or aggressors were immobilized by me and get caught. Some ended up in hospitals with broken arms especially if they used dangerous weapons. The fear of Singapore strict laws saved me from the confrontation with the China man but I feel that they should be responsible for their actions.

Anyway, I took photos of the trolley that was being dumped into that river.



If you want to see more of Ugly Singaporeans and Foreigners, here's another site on bad habits:

http://badbadhabits.blogspot.com/

Don't Be Scammed Out of Our Slippers?

Hey kids, Watcher here. Boy, am I in a foul mood today. Not only are my slippers missing, some scam artist sent me an email asking for my I/C number. Of course, I didn't bite — you gotta get up pretty early in the morning to fool the ol' Grumpster. I have received similar emails from Nigerian scammers disguised as they are from Japan, China, Taiwan, Africa and Hong Kong VIP's urgently seeking someone to take over their family or country inheritance.

I thought a nice mid-morning nap would calm me down, but no dice. First, years back Malaysia Clob shares took over my entire life savings after declaring that it didn't existed in Singapore. Now I'm being besieged by grafters and get rich quick scammers! Thoroughly annoyed, I researched the top "scam" searches. I came out with the list of companies involved with money games or so-called MLM investment schemes which had either gone busted or went against the law.

Shameful to say that I have also invested in some of them and lost a few thousand dollars. That is, after being persistently persuaded by friends who worked on my greed and the illusion of making easy money. Some of them are still actively around scamming investor for money. Most of them used similar models of "payplan" otherwise covering up actual "Ponzi" scheme to scam millions of dollars before they closed down the company and disappeared from the scene. Then many of those scammers got the cheek to pull the leaders together and start another company. Sure, they will start the scamming all over again.

Take a look at our top 15. Oh, and keep your eyes peeled for my slippers — 80 cent reward to whoever finds 'em first.

Sources on the lists:

1. Sunshine Empire (Emcom) - CLOSED DOWN!

Founder James Phang and some of his CEO's were charged in court by the Singapore government and CID on 5th march, 2009.

http://www.firstmillionchallenge.com/sunshine-empire-too-good-to-be-true/

http://www.thelocalking.com/singapore/miscellaneous--others.../sunshine-empire.html

2. Swisscash (Swiss Mutual Fund) - CLOSED DOWN!

The biggest money scam of the century, propelled by top scammers like Serene Chea from Singapore. She allegedly sold points for cash to investors who earned worthless points without the prospects of cashing out.

http://swisscash-investment-review.blogspot.com/

http://www.worldlawdirect.com/forum/internet-hyip-scams/683-swisscash-scam-135.html#post18890

3. BuyEbarrel - CLOSED DOWN!

Employed the similar tactics as Swisscash with promises of huge payouts for doing nothing!

http://www.talkgold.com/forum/r144694-.html

http://hubpages.com/hub/wwwbuyebarrelcom

4. Lucky Index - CLOSED DOWN!

Illegal gaming and lottery MLM scam.

5. MobileEwallet.com

Malaysia claimed to has been granted MSC Malaysia status by MDEC. A lot of members who invested in their payplan complained that they never get paid.

http://mobilewallet.bravehost.com/

http://www.thelocalking.com/explore/sunshine-empire/more/page=1/order=SubmissionDateNew

6. e-Worldusa.com

Seen their comp plan. So much like pyramid. Claimed to be aiming for IPO's.

http://forum.lowyat.net/topic/713903/+0#entry17821689

http://mlmg.sgforums.com/forums/14/topics/266839

7. SMICAP.COM

Virtual shares that promise to return 100 times your investment. Virtual shares got no actual value. You have to get another investor to buy over your shares later.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20090116202104AA7GvQr

8. SINGCAP.COM

Owners are leaders that came out of SMICAP and used similar plan.

http://www.singcap.com

9. WCI - CLOSED DOWN!

Owners are Singapore two MLM leaders that came out from Sunshine Empire and Chu Fong (defuncted Taiwan MLM company). One of the Malaysian partner siphoned off all the money after promising huge returns for the investors into their bird-nests and oil farms in Malysia and Indonesia which did not existed.

10. Xthreem Online - CLOSED DOWN!

Members never get paid. Speaker by the name of Michael Reyes (Philipino) who claimed to be representative of Xthreem cannot be found after collecting hundreds of thousands of dollars from investors in SIngapore.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AmazAxmEoS72NabKr9QNvrojzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20080511013030AAGiWHP

http://xthreem-goa.blogspot.com/2007/11/xthreem-online-scheme-4.html

11. MegaeForex.com

They shut it down after scamming investors for two years but open up the site again to scam more people. The only problem is that the old investors had not been able to log into the site anymore without any reasons given to them. They left the site open so as to scam more people. However with their name listed as scam in the search engine, it will be harder for them to put a fast one anymore.

http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index;_ylt=AvZKFcRZLV3zyq4G486JhkEjzKIX;_ylv=3?qid=20080417030310AAW0

12. Oilpod.com

http://tankinlian.blogspot.com/2007/12/risky-business-venture.html

http://www.lioninvestor.com/oilpods-update/

No payout was received by investors after some time with Oilpod.

A check on filings by Powder River to SEC shows that the company is having cash flow difficulties.

OilPods has instructed their legal representatives in the United States to take the necessary actions to protect the interest of investors.

13. ProfitableCapital.com

http://www.propertyscam.org.uk/d6plinks/7HCBME

http://www.lioninvestor.com/profitable-capital-group-alert/

Profitable Capital Group is a scam. They are misusing another company’s name to operate a ponzi scam that promises outrageous returns like Swisscash (or Swiss Mutual Fund)and unfortunately, many Singaporeans joined them and history always repeat itself.

14. Profitable Plots Landbanking

Raided by Malaysian Government! Investors in Singapore never get paid.

http://www.alantanblog.com/investment/land-banking-is-a-scam.html

http://www.propertyscam.org.uk/d6plinks/7NYCFK

15. Genneva.com

Gold bar investment whihc is based in Malaysia but have office in Singapore.
2% return per month and 24% per year! minimum investment $10K. If it is so good, it means to outperform Temasek and GIC liao. Means its the world best investment liao cos everyone is losing money in their stocks and shares.

Those without money to invest can join in as sales person with 4 tiers overriding commission of up to 1%. My friend asked me to burrow money from my insurance policy to invest in Genneva gold after I told him I have no money to invest. He quitted after one week citing non transparency of the company as a reason.

If you have a lot of spare money, maybe you wish to throw some here:

http://www.genneva.com.sg/

Wolves In Sheep’s Clothing’s

Recent news about Sunshine Empire in the Singapore Chinese newspapers!

Many people are blinded by greed which is why they fell into such scams like Sunshine Empire, Swisscash and others etc.. (I used to be one of them who invested a few thousand dollars into Swisscash and Megaeforex). If a person has sufficient financial knowledge and financial literacy, such scams are quite easy to spot and one would have easily avoided being conned. I've shared on this forum and other forums tips on "How to avoid falling into scams" I actually know of people who are highly educated (graduates like me) and yet still fell into this scam. It shows that High education does not equate to Financial Literacy. Thus, raising one's financial literacy can really help one to avoid scams and losses and increase likelihood of growing one's money.

It's unfortunate that many people I know (friends, colleagues, relatives) had put in a lot of money into hair-brained get rich money scheme (not recruited by me as I did not sponsor anyone into money games but I am one of the gullible investor). Funny thing is that the people I know are very much savvy with their money and supposed to possess higher financial literacy but yet many of them had placed their faith with James Phang of Sunshine Empire. In your opinion, do you think there is any way for aggrieved investors to recover any of their capital? I would think 10 cents on the dollar would be a possible scenario, or perhaps it is too optimistic.....

While James Phang and his cohorts might get his deserved punishment done, there are many others who have left thousands of investors broke and gone free unnoticed like the defunct Swisscash, Megaeforex, BuyeBarrel, Xthreem, WCI and many others etc. Many feel that this group should be bought to justice too! Old scammers might have gone but many new ones will emerge. People are governed by greed and desires to obtain benefits with the least effort so there are always people who will never learn from their bad experiences. They will continue to explore, accept Ponzi or easy money making schemes and exploit others from it.

Lee Kuan Yew Reconsiders Population

Living, as I do, in Singapore, I was rather relieved to learn that Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore's Minister Mentor (an advisory leader), has stated that he now believes that Singapore should not have a population of 6.5 million, but that one of 5 to 5.5 million would be optimum.

He is quoted in the papers as saying: "I have not quite been sold on the idea that we should have 6.5 million. I think there's an optimum size for the land that we have to preserve the open spaces and the sense of comfort".

He went onto say that he wouldn't like to see Singapore turn into another Hong Kong, with its towers, one after the other, each blocking out the other's light. He indicated that he thought Hong Kong's 7 million population was an undesirable number.

I don't know if Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew is aware of it, but Singapore's population density is already rather high, even compared to Hong Kong's.

A quick search of Wikipedia, brings up the following figures from the United Nations World Populations Prospects Report (2004 revision), with estimates calculated for July 2005. In that data set, Hong Kong is listed as the 3rd most dense place on Earth at a population density of 6,407 people per sq. km. "Wow...that's high!", you might think. But where is Singapore on this United Nation list? Fourth place. Singapore comes in at 6,369 people per sq. km for these figures. So, you might think that Singapore's population density is high - indeed very similar to Hong Kong's - but not quite there yet. However, Singapore's population has risen since these figures were gathered - and guess what? Hong Kong's population has declined, a little.

Recalculating for the new population of Singapore which Lee Kuan Yew said was 4.8 million a couple of days ago, gives a population density for Singapore, as of now, of 6,823 people per sq. km. This is 6.5 % MORE dense than Hong Kong at its population peak. How about now, though?

Well, Hong Kong's population has declined from 7.04 million in 2004, to 6.98 million for the latest figures in July 2007. That means Hong Kong's population density is now 6,351 people per sq. km. That means that Singapore's population density is presently 7.43% greater than Hong Kong's. No wonder it was beginning to feel crowded.

What this means is that Singapore is now the 3rd most densely populated nation on Earth. Hong Kong has slid to fourth position.

Let us look forward. The projected population (now) by Lee Kuan Yew, of 5.5 million would represent a density of 7,812.5 people per sq km. That is a full 23 % more dense than Hong Kong is presently.

What about the fabled 6.5 million population projection tabled last year? Well, that would give a population density of 9,233 people per sq. km. That is a population density of 45.4 % more dense than Hong Kong - basically half as dense again.

These figures are sobering to read. Anyone of imagination can understand what they mean for the quality of life for Singaporeans. Yet, it is good to hear that Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew is re-evaluating the situation himself. He is, perhaps, listening to how people feel about it. Perhaps he is imagining the situation himself. Yes, by all means have a growing economy - but one must also consider the quality of life for every Singaporean and foreigner who lives and works here. If that quality of life becomes too low - they will simply leave, Singaporean and foreigner alike.

Personally, I have never visited Hong Kong. However, I have seen many pictures of its crowds - and my family have visited - so I hear that its crowdedness is hardly enviable. How much less enviable would Singapore be at 23 % more dense, or even 45.4 %? It would be a very different city - and probably an utterly unlivable one. It would be difficult to put that many people on these 704 sq kms of a city state and still afford them all a decent life.

I am relieved that Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew himself is re-addressing these issues. There is hope, from what he is saying, that moderation in population growth might be a new aim.

It should be - for Singapore is already too crowded - and getting more so every day. Let us, indeed, as Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew says himself, not be as over-populated as Hong Kong. If that is to be so, however, we would, in fact, have to reduce the population hence forth. For Hong Kong is already taking the lead in becoming a less dense, more livable city, than Singapore. Let's follow her down (in population) shall we?

PS: Mentor Minister Lee is most respectable person in my life. I respected him for his unselfish and persistent zeal in transforming Singapore from slump to what it is today. Hopefully his followers will continue to pursue his noble deeds for Singapore.

PS: Mentor Minister Lee is most respectable person in my life. I respected him for his unselfish and persistent zeal in transforming Singapore from slump to what it is today. Hopefully his followers will continue to pursue his noble deeds for Singapore.

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