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Friends in MCF, anyone encountered real BAD incidents traveling to Malaysia , please contribute here . For our Singapore friends to take note and precautions. Like being robbed, car being vandalised, being pick pocketed, being bullied, being threatened etc. Please write your bad experience here...................

ASIAONE / BUSINESS / NEWS / STORY Monday, Jul 23, 2012 my paper Real wages may drop 2.7 per cent this year Ms Chan Shu Jun has her eye on a new camera, but her rising monthly expenditure is making her think twice about buying it. The 25-year-old analyst in the financial sector estimates that she spends about half of her monthly income - in the region of $4,000 - on food, shopping and entertainment. Although her wages have increased by about 7 per cent in recent years, Ms Chan is still concerned by inflation and the spectre of shrinking incomes here. She said: "I'm exploring investment opportunities to offset inflation. There's no point saving money in banks as the interest rates they offer cannot keep up with inflation." Her concerns are shared by many, with real incomes likely to fall by 2.7 per cent this year, according to a survey by the Singapore Human Resources Institute (SHRI) and wage consultancy Remuneration Data Specialists. This is despite an expected increase of 1.5 per cent in nominal wages. The survey - which was conducted last month and covered 167 companies across key sectors, like services and construction - shows that further wage stagnation is expected next year. Although nominal wages are expected to increase by 3.1 per cent next year, that will be offset by an expected 3 per cent inflation rate. The former chief economist for the Government of Singapore Investment Corp, Mr Yeoh Lam Keong said that Singapore faces both "wage stagnation" and "inflationary problems". "Wage stagnation appears to be a general trend globally but, in Singapore, this is exacerbated by the massive influx of low-wage workers, which depresses nominal wages," he said. SHRI executive director David Ang said he is especially concerned with the ability of low-wage workers to manage their daily expenses on transport and food. Any increases would eat into their disposable incomes, he explained. Mr Yeoh said that these expenses make up a big proportion of low-wage workers' "consumption baskets", thus an income drop will hurt their pockets. He suggests that the Government raise the Workfare Income Supplement Scheme payout significantly by "about two to three times, and allocate a bigger share of the payout in cash rather than in the form of CPF". This will help push low-wage workers past the poverty line, rather than "wait for productivity levels to increase to push real wages up". He said: "That would take too long." The survey also found that about eight in 10 companies are expected to hire new staff this year. This is projected to drop to fewer than six in 10 firms next year. Mr Yeoh believes that the sluggish United States economy, euro-zone crisis and China's faltering growth may dampen business sentiments here. "This could then cause a lack of business confidence to hire," he said. For more my paper stories click here. she spent 4K on food etc and that is half of her income and she worry how about those earning MUCH less than her.. sometime i wonder how the press work ... they either feature the extreme high or extreme low income group ... not realistic at all

Went to sakaru buffet yesterday. sitting beside a family of China ppl. We arrived at the same time and they are rowdy man! well,they don q and took quite a lot of food, maybe they thought can only take 1 time. anyways, i saw them taking a lot of japanes food like salmon, clams, etc. and they were sitting for a good 10 mins with the food infront of them. i was wondering what are they waiting for until i heard them asking the waiter in Chinglish " whare sting boat?" the waitier looked at them and said"no steamboat, buffet, take and eat." chinman. "how eat no cooks......" the waier shaked his head and said, japanese food no cook" Chnaman."no(s) cooks!" after that the waiter walked away. and i heard the china family said in mandarin" no cook how to eat. Haiyo!" apparently they have never seen or ate japanes food before. They threw the dishes at the the next table and went off to take "cooked" food. again, table full of food and some they don even touch after 1 bite.... cannot tahan!

My wife reced this email last week supposedly from his company supplier. She thought it is real but luckily she replied saying that she doesnt have the money. Only today when the supplier came and when asked, he told my wife that he did not emailed her and that was a SCAM. He believed that his email was being HACKED. "I'm writing this with tears in my eyes. I came down here Spain, Madrid for a short vacation to visit a resort and got mugged at gun point last nite at the hotel where I lodged. All cash, credit card, cell were stolen off me. I've been to the Spain Embassy and the Police here but they're not helping issues at all. My return flight leaves tomorrow and I have problems settling the hotel bills. The hotel manager wont let us leave until we settle the hotel bills which is 1500 Euro or anything that you can afford now. I am totally freaked out. Please reply back and let me know if you are able to help out so that I can give necessary details. You will need to get to me via Western Union money transfer. I promise to pay you back as soon as I get home. Koh XXX XXX (Real Name)

Yahoo Report: Marina Bay Sands basement floods A hall at Marina Bay Sands (MBS) exhibition centre flooded around noon on Tuesday. Exhibitors for Singapore International Water Week were at the area. An MBS spokesperson on Tuesday said, "At approximately 12:05pm today, a small area of Hall F was affected by an overflow of rainwater. Our teams promptly provided assistance to the event organizer and any affected exhibitors." She said the area was cordoned off and cleaning completed. MBS suspects the source of the overflow "is a drainage issue due to heavy rains in the morning". She said investigations into the incident are being made to prevent a similar occurrence in the future. How timely can it get when SG host & showcase "Singapore International Water Week" Timing to such perfection that it can never happen again in once every 50 years or a 100 years....

Hi all, Some got it for weekend shopping, e.g, a SUV or a MPV. Some husbands and Wives drive different cars so ended up 2 cars for one household. Some just want to try different made and brands , also ended up > 1 car. So where do you stand ? Regards,

our country is led by people who think that people like mrbrown is the REAL CHECK to PAP. we probably should pay them a really high salary for doing that dutry no? not forgetting xiaxue too! next i think these people will also think that the the people who lead and come out with the best policies are people like mrbrown. =) http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=10150823256467934

http://www.asiaone.com/News/AsiaOne%2BNews...518-346619.html The Star/Asia News Network Friday, May 18, 2012 PUTRAJAYA - Beginning June 1, foreign visitors to Malaysia are no longer required to fill in the Immigration Disembarkation Card, commonly known as the IMM.26 Form. They only need to produce their passports upon entering the country. Home Ministry secretary-general Tan Sri Mahmood Adam said the procedure was no longer required following the introduction of the biometric recording system by the Immigration Department. The system records the data of foreigners through the National Enforcement Registration System (NERS). Mahmood said NERS, which was introduced on June 1 last year, fulfilled the Tourism Ministry's requirement to record the data of foreign tourists to Malaysia.

Would you dare eat food transported in this? Wonder how it passed inspection? Top corroded till rainwater can enter the back, brake lights not working.

Now you know why men drinks! 11.bmp

Have not visited kk for years and with my 5yrs old Sonny having high fever up and down for more than a week with 3 times gp visit, decided to drop by kk and holy s--t.. $90 already... (use to be like $65 or $70??)... And the best part, written on the receipt garmen grant is only $10.... meaning Singaporean kid is only paying $10 lesser than others?.. No wonder they say raising kid is expensive...

With a 7 points lead, the title will be theirs unless something terribly went wrong. Do expect a backlash against Chelesa on Tuesday though. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/17801506

Source: Batman pulled over! for Batman. The world need more 'superhero' like him, despite being rich, still find time to bring joy to the kids.

Is this real Macdonald delivery man? Saw this man riding a bicycle, puffing away with this untidy attire belongs to Macdonald. If this is real, (( Slap forehead ))....what is happening to Macdonald?

I am looking around for insurance quote. I saw the following at ocbc car insurance. http://www.ocbc.com.sg/personal-banking/in...s_AutoWise.shtm The chart stated NCD 50% will have 15% off premiums NCD 30

Is this real or fake??? http://dailynewbloginternational.wordpress...ovi-dead-at-49/ Rockstar Jon Bon Jovi (John Francis Bongiovi, Jr) was pronounced dead today after paramedics found him in a coma at his Empress Hotel, city and law enforcement of Asbury Park, NJ sources told The Times after World Christmas Tour concert on The Bamboozle Festival,North Beach Asbury Park. New Jersey Fire Department-First Aid Captain Douglas Gray told The Times that paramedics responded to a 911 call from the home. When they arrived, Bon Jovi was not breathing. The paramedics performed CPR and took Bon Jovi to Jersey Shore Medical Center, Ruda said. Hundreds of reporters gathered at the hospital awaiting word on his condition. The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said Bon Jovi team rushed to Bon Jovi

I oso be taxi driber http://www.mrbrown.com/blog/2011/12/this-m...n+%28mrbrown%29 <h3 class="entry-header" style="margin-top: 1px; margin-bottom: 10px; margin-right: 0px; margin-left: 0px; border-top-width: 0px; border-right-width: 0px; border-bottom-width: 0px; border-left-width: 0px; border-style: initial; border-color: initial; font-family: Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: large; text-align: left; ">This may be the reason why Comfort DelGro raised taxi fares</h3> The outrage over Comfort DelGro's upcoming fare hike and extension of peak surcharge hours to include Sunday and public holidays has been quick and visceral. I found this photo floating around teh internets which may or may not be the reason for the fare hike. Not to be outdone, there are rumours that CityCab is also planning a new surcharge for customers who want to be the Elite of Elite Taxi customers. Soon you will see the pre-peak taxi surcharge, pre-midnight-disappearance surcharge, the driver-lunch-hour & changing shift surcharge. My other predictions: 2012: "Comfort Del-Groan Taxis is pleased to announce that the new surcharge-less period of the day is now 2.15pm to 3.15pm." 2013: "Comfort Del-groan Taxis is pleased to announce that there will be no fare surcharge on days beginning with "G"." 2014: "Comfort Del-groan Taxis is pleased to announce that there will now only be two surcharges: peak and more-peak." (In case you are wondering, these are NOT real photos of Singapore cabs but are cleverly photoshopped images by witty internet persons.)

If you find some words / expressions which sound Singlish but not sure about their origins, please bring them here.... for example:- The common expression "he/she is one kind...", does it originate from chinese dialect or Egnlish ??

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/S...ory_737997.html 4 times a day is real time?

Beijing real estate prices drop as year ends hqsb posted on November 24, 2011 01:08 http://www.globaltimes.cn/DesktopModules/D...&PortalID=0 Homes in Beijing have seen a dramatic price drop as the year comes to a close. Insiders say the reduction comes as developers need cash returns that are not coming fast enough. A local property company has been promoting its houses in Beijingxiangsu community, located near the East Fifth Ring Road, for 11,600 yuan ($1,825) per square meter and some units are selling for as low as 480,000 yuan, according to the Beijing Morning Post. Figures from the Beijing Real Estate Trade and Management website show the average price of an apartment in this community has dropped from 22,500 yuan per square meter to 11,600 yuan, said the report. The company started pre-sales in June, but none of its apartment projects have sold out, a sharp contrast compared to last year's busy real estate market. Another builder, Vanke, has also reduced the price of several projects by 10 to 20 percent, indicating the housing market in Beijing is in a rapid decline, according to the report. Zhang Yue, a senior analyst at Beijing Homelink Real Estate, said many real estate companies followed Vanke's lead and reduced their price by between 10 and 20 percent. "It is unusual to see a 50 percent reduction," said Zhang. An anonymous staff member at a local property company told the paper a half-price home comes close to the original cost of the property, adding possible reasons for the huge discount. "At the end of the year, many real estate developers have to repay loans to the bank and pay the construction workers," he said. Yu Liang, the president of Vanke, recently told the press his company has "gone into hibernation." "Cash on hand is more important than profits now," he said. Zhang Dawei, marketing director of Centaline Real Estate Beijing, told the Global Times the decrease in home prices shows the government's policy on the housing market, such as purchase restrictions and loan regulations, has had an effect. "If the government doesn't loosen the policy, I think the prices might keep dropping lower," he said.

Real income divide Moving into a new neighbourhood has highlighted class differences Published on Nov 6, 2011 By Chua Mui Hoong [email protected] I was at a Dempsey cafe with some friends when a stray comment got me thinking about Singapore, social class and lifestyle experiences. What do you do on weekends, I was asked. Nothing much, I replied. My favourite weekend morning activity is to have breakfast at a hawker centre and read the papers. Oh yes, he nodded. Just to soak in the atmosphere? I was puzzled by the comment. In the two seconds it took me to process why, the conversation had moved on. And then I realised why. I have lived in everything from an attap house to a landed property to a condominium, but I always returned to Housing Board flats. Hawker centres, coffee shops and the rhythm of HDB life represent my native habitat. It is places such as Dempsey I go to, to soak in the atmosphere. And even then, I avoid weekend evenings when the trendy turn out in droves, and go there on quiet weekdays. I moved to a HDB estate in the west five months ago. Since then, I've realised two things. One, I remain at heart an HDB kid. Two, I had become used to certain comforts of a middle-class life. I had assumed they were just common habits of an increasingly affluent Singapore, but living here has sensitised me to just how subtle but real, the gap is between the working class and the middle class. In the Bukit Timah condominium where I used to live, every other car was a BMW, an Audi or a Mercedes, with a few Lamborghinis and Porsches. This is the UMI - upper middle income - class. Many are millionaires. According to a Boston Consulting Group report in June, Singapore has the highest concentration of millionaire households in the world, with 16 per cent of all households boasting at least $1 million in assets under management. That's 170,000 households out of 1.13 million. In Bishan where I also used to live, the carparks even of HDB estates are full of Japanese sedans and big cars, with a sprinkling of European luxury cars. This is the solid middle class, the HDB burgher. In my current estate, every other vehicle is a van, pick-up or lorry of some kind. I glance at the registered addresses on the vehicle, and I know most of those driving these vehicles home are not the bosses. My guess is they are the delivery drivers, the maintenance technicians. This is working- class Singapore. For the average HDB working class family, life remains a struggle. I see it around me. HDB shops have bare cement floors and fewer wares. Children play unsupervised by adults. When I changed my curtains, I packed my old ones into a bag, affixed a label that said 'Fits Master Bedroom' and left it at the foot of my block. It was gone when I returned from breakfast. My categorisation of Singapore groups are, of course, generalisations based on anecdotal experiences. But anecdote can be the basis of insight. In middle-class Bishan, I enjoyed the convenience of HDB life with its coffee shops, but I also had easy access to the cafes, organic food stores and deluxe cafes I enjoyed. Here in the west, the merchandise and shop mix is different. I went shopping for Dryel. That's the dry-cleaning kit that comes with a zipped-up bag and sheets of chemical cleaners you can use in your dryer, so you can dry-clean your silk dresses at home. I used to have no problems finding it in my old neighbourhoods. In my new estate, I couldn't find it in a few supermarkets. I asked one sales staff and was greeted with a stare, a loud question and a shake of the head. If you think about it, it's not surprising. Not many HDB families have a clothes dryer, so why would they need Dryel? I gave up, and returned to my old haunt, the Cold Storage at Guthrie House, a tiny supermarket with an amazing knack of stocking things every household - okay, every UMI household - can need. There was Dryel. And nice bread. And nice pate to go with said bread. I came to see that there are not just two Singapore: the heartlanders and the rest. Among the heartlanders, there is the middle class and the working class. And, I am coming to realise, there is another sub-set of the UMI class. If the UMI is the top 20 per cent, the top 1 per cent would be the Ultra Rich. My totally subjective definition of this group is that they earn at least $2 million a year, live in Good Class Bungalow areas or penthouse condominium apartments, and fly First or Business Class on holiday. These folks apologise for their homes being 'only 5,000 sq ft' - as one interviewee once told me. Their numbers will grow, if Singapore continues to do well, and attract Asia's rising super class. So there you have at least four groups: the working class and the middle class among the heartlanders; and in the private property group, you have the UMI and the Ultra Rich. So long as social boundaries are porous, and the average heartlander can move from the working to the middle to the UMI group, the Singapore Dream remains alive. The new twist in the old debate on inequality, though, is the gap among the elite: between the top 20 per cent and the top 1 per cent. New York Times columnist David Brooks wrote last week of this Blue Inequa- lity fuelled by zooming incomes of the top 1 per cent. 'Within each profession, the top performers are now paid much better than the merely good or average performers. If you live in these big cities, you see people similar to yourself who are earning much more while benefiting from low tax rates, wielding disproportionate political power, gaining in prestige and contributing seemingly little to the social good.' I have a feeling the anger over high ministerial salaries is fuelled in part by Blue Inequality. Some critics of the high-ministerial pay policy come from the UMI class, and don't see why folks who went to school or used to work in the same office with them, should be propelled into the Ultra Rich group once they enter politics, thanks to multi-million-dollar salaries paid out of the public purse. It's easy to target the Ultra Rich as Public Enemy No. 1, as the other social groups can band together against them. But that battle is not really relevant to the lives of the working class. For this group, what matters most are a job that pays enough for a life without strife, and good schools for their children. For this group that forks out only for essentials, a set of made-to-measure curtains is a luxury. [email protected]

Sorry, my earlier post i typed 400M PM which is rather impossible. this guy advertised every sunday boasting to own 100 ppties with rental of 400kpm, and boasts to be able to teach people the tricks of ppty investment? Another post says can own ppties and get immediate cash with no money downpayment???? possible??? Is the really real? if hoax, Shouldn't the straits times ban people from misleading the public?