Cat map post: I made a website for community cats in SG!

• A Redditor created a website that tracks community cats in Singapore, a move welcomed by others on Reddit

• The website features an interactive map that indicates the rough location of the cats, their name, s*x, community, likes, dislikes and unique personalities

• However, some have raised concerns as they felt that the map may pose a danger for the featured community cats as 'dedicated' cat killers may use it to find the felines

SINGAPORE --- A crowd-sourced interactive map that tracks community cats across Singapore has divided opinions online on whether it is a useful initiative or a tool that could be exploited by those who harbour intentions to harm strays.

On Monday (Jan 16), Redditor "T-Rekt_Games" announced on the subreddit /r/Singapore that he or she had created a website with a map of community cats island-wide.

"I made this website to raise more empathy for community cats in SG."

"I thought it will be good for people to know more about some of the wonderful cats that live with us, as well as their different personalities," wrote the Redditor, who called for submissions to the map.

While the map had other Redditors cheering on the idea, many raised concerns over whether "dedicated" cat killers could possibly use it with ill intentions.

Less than a day later, the website — which had 20 cats at the time of the Redditor’s post — was quickly populated with crowd-sourced information of close to 100 cats on Tuesday (Jan 17).

The website features a map of Singapore dotted with cat icons, indicating the rough location of the community cats.

Users who click on the cat icons will be able to find the name, s*x, community, likes, dislikes and unique personality of each community cat.

Our personal favourite might just be Cloudy, a white cat which “always looks like it is going through an existential crisis”.

Redditors were "litter-ally" in love with the website.

“It’s so nice to know that these kitties have people looking out for and thinking of them,” said one Redditor.

CONCERN OVER ‘DEDICATED’ CAT KILLERS

Despite the website having the best intentions for community cats, some Reddit users voiced concern for the safety of the felines.

Many worry that the website will be weaponised by cat killers to search for cats to harm.

“I used to be very active in the cat rescuing scene and you’d be surprised how dedicated some cat killers are to lurk in Facebook groups meant for community cat discussion and rescuing just to find out the locations of cats,” said one concerned online user.

“Many feeders and rescuers have reported their community cats going missing after posting about them.”

Although “T-Rekt_Games” clarified that the locations of cats posted are not exact and a randomised location within the borders of a community is used to position the cats, some Redditors still questioned it.

“It's very easy to figure out the exact location of the cats like this. Singapore isn't a big country and it doesn't take much to pinpoint where the cats are,” pointed out one user.

Another added: “It may seem bizarre but there are some strange people out there, who have a ton of time on their hands to do the most depraved things.

"They could use the background of the cats' pictures to identify the location of the cats, and spend an indefinite amount of time finding them.”

One Redditor suggested the Redditor work with authorities for the interactive map: "Have you reached out to SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) or any of the local agencies for input? They may help out or spread word to members, or give you some pointers to avoid."

TODAY has contacted SPCA for comments.

In response to the online feedback, the creator of the interactive cat map told TODAY on Wednesday (Jan 18) that some changes have been made to further protect the community cats.

Instead of displaying the community of each cat, the website now shows the broader region each cat belongs to, namely the North, North East, East, West, or Central areas.

Backgrounds of images that could give away the exact location of cats are also blurred.

Writing to the Reddit community “T-Rekt_Games” said: "In my original website, I chose to display the communities (for instance Bedok) of different cats as I believed it would help people relate with and empathise with them, as well as increase their legitimacy."

"However, many people provided feedback that disclosing the community could still be risky...To further ensure the safety of the cats, I decided to remove all the communities and make the locations on the map even more inexact."

https://www.todayonline.com/singapore/reddit-map-community-cats-2091141

WORKERS at Twitter’s Singapore office were told to empty out their desks and vacate the premises, said people familiar with the situation, as Elon Musk continues to pare expenses around the globe.

Twitter staff were informed via email on Wednesday (Jan 11) that they had until 5.00 pm to leave the CapitaGreen building and resume their duties remotely from Thursday, one of the people said, asking not to be named discussing private information. Singapore-based staffers have now been reassigned as remote workers in Twitter’s internal system until further notice, the person added.

Singapore serves as Twitter’s Asia-Pacific headquarters, a region that was hit hard by deep and abrupt job cuts when new owner Musk took over the San Francisco-based firm. The company this month also let go of Nur Azhar Bin Ayob, who had been the head of site integrity for the region and a relatively recent hire.

Representatives for Twitter didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment. A spokesperson for CapitaLand, the owner of its Singapore offices, said Twitter remains a tenant at CapitaGreen without elaborating.

Musk’s cost-cutting efforts have included not paying rent on its global headquarters, and it was sued over that issue last month by the landlord of its San Francisco offices. Casey Newton of Platformer first tweeted about the Singapore office clearout, adding that the reason for it was failure to pay rent on the facility. BLOOMBERG

SINGAPORE: Daily circulation numbers of SPH Media titles were found to have been inflated by between 85,000 and 95,000, or about 10 to 12 per cent of the reported daily average circulation, The Straits Times reported on Monday (Jan 9).

There were instances where copies were printed, counted for circulation and then destroyed, as well as double-counting of subscriptions.

The practices came to light during a review on internal processes in March 2022.

In response to CNA's queries, an SPH Media spokesperson said: "Some inconsistencies in the reporting of the data were discovered, and we have immediately taken steps to strengthen processes.

"The staff involved had been taken to task, or had left the organisation."

SPH Media did not say how long the practices have been going on for. The staff involved were not named.

Apart from printing copies to be counted for circulation before being destroyed, the Straits Times also reported other examples of the inconsistencies discovered.

Lapsed contracts continued to be counted into circulation data, it reported, citing an SPH Media spokesperson.

"A project account was injected with additional funding over a period of time to purchase fictitious circulation," the spokesman added.

"Certain circulation numbers were arbitrarily derived."

Among the titles published by SPH Media include The Straits Times, The Business Times, Lianhe Zaobao, Shin Min Daily News, Berita Harian and Tamil Murasu.

The Ministry of Communications and Information (MCI) said in a statement on Monday that it has asked SPH Media to share its full findings and has recently received SPH Media's internal report on the matter.

"MCI will undertake our own review to determine if these inconsistencies in circulation data affect the decision to fund, and the amount the Government committed to fund SPH Media," said the spokesperson.

"MCI expects SPH Media to fully cooperate with our review."

CNA has asked SPH Media a number of additional questions, including how long the circulation data was being inflated, whether a police report has been made, and how it plans to compensate companies which bought advertising space at rates based on the false data.

The review was initiated shortly after SPH media was spun off from Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) in December 2021 to become a not-for-profit entity - a company limited by guarantee (CLG).

The period of review was from September 2020 to March 2022, which included a full financial year from September 2020 to August 2021. It also included periods when the media business was still part of the listed company, and when SPH Media had become a CLG.

SPH had first expressed intent in May 2021 to transfer its media business into a not-for-profit entity amid the ongoing challenge of falling advertising revenue.

The move was approved in September 2021 by shareholders of SPH who have voted in favour of the proposed restructuring of the company.

Following the move, MCI said it will provide up to S$900 million in funding support for SMT over the next five years, and that the company will have to provide progress updates to MCI on a half-yearly basis.

https://www.channelnewsasia.com/singapore/sph-media-circulation-numbers-inflated-internal-review-3192741

AFF Championship: Lions crash out after losing 4-1 to Malaysia

KUALA LUMPUR – Singapore’s AFF Championship campaign ended with a whimper on Tuesday, when they were mauled 4-1 by Malaysia in their final Group B match at the Bukit Jalil Stadium.

As a result, the Tigers leapfrogged their old rivals into second place to make the last four at the Lions’ expense.

Malaysia will meet Group A winners Thailand in the semi-finals, with Group B winners Vietnam facing Indonesia.

Pre-match, Malaysia coach Kim Pan-gon had stoked the rivalry and called Singapore’s football “negative”, while proclaiming his side to be “proactive”.

The 53-year-old South Korean was proven right.

The Lions’ three changes to the starting XI that held Vietnam to a 0-0 draw last Friday – with Hafiz Nor, Song Ui-young and Amy Recha coming in for Ryhan Stewart, Faris Ramli and Ilhan Fandi – suggested Singapore coach Takayuki Nishigaya was holding back with Faris and Shawal Anuar on bench.

In comparison, the Tigers’ attack on the pitch was as relentless as the Ultras Malaya’s singing in the stands.

Nishigaya, however, insisted that it was the right tactical decision to start with Amy and use Shawal in the second half as "Amy gave a good performance".

He added: "We wanted to play higher up the pitch in the first half but we were constantly under attack...

"We wanted to change our defensive shape in the second half, but we couldn't do it.

"I don't regret how we set up. We tried to attack and go for goal, but we couldn't achieve this in this game. We will definitely work to improve on our attacking plays and defensively as well."

From the start, the visitors were indebted to goalkeeper Hassan Sunny who pulled off a brilliant double save from Faisal Halim and Ruventhiran Vengadesan in the ninth minute.

Eight minutes later, he came to the Lions' rescue again when he denied Faisal, who had stolen the ball from Hafiz.

But there was nothing Hassan could do in the 35th minute, when Shah Shahiran lost possession on the left flank, and Safawi Rasid whipped in the ball for Darren Lok to power home a near-post header.

In the absence of injured brothers Ikhsan and Ilhan Fandi, Singapore struggled without a target man up front.

SHOW MORE

SINGAPORE – A full-time national serviceman who went absent without official leave (AWOL) for more than nine years was on Friday sentenced to 23 months’ jail.

Iryadi Ariffin Mohd Hambal, now 31, was posted to the Singapore Civil Defence Force headquarters in July 2011. He began failing to report for duty in July 2012. He continued to be absent for about nine years and three months before surrendering himself to the authorities in October 2021. Court documents did not state how he evaded detection during that time.

Iryadi pleaded guilty on Friday to a charge under the Civil Defence Act. He told the court that he had delayed reporting for national service duty as his mother was hospitalised at the time and his family needed money. “I was working because I needed to raise funds and the NS salary is a bit small,” said Iryadi, who completed his two years of NS this month.

He added that he eventually took his parents’ advice to turn himself in as he “did not wish to run any more” and hoped to “start life anew as a better person”.

The prosecution sought two years’ jail for the accused, which is the maximum punishment for going AWOL.

He said he regretted his actions and showed good conduct in camp after his surrender. “I need to be there for my family, as my father is undergoing check-ups for low haemoglobin levels that could be cancerous,” he said.

In sentencing him, District Judge Bay said Iryadi’s period of absence was rather extreme. “I am mindful of your family circumstances, but you should be aware that your national service obligations must come first,” he said.

The judge acknowledged, however, that the accused had voluntarily surrendered himself and had pleaded guilty at a fairly early opportunity. “Ultimately, it is essential to impose a sentence commensurate with the period of AWOL to act as a sufficient deterrent against these offences.

“And to encourage offenders to surrender, so as to break their AWOL period as quickly as possible, or face the ultimate consequence of a more severe term of imprisonment as punishment,” said District Judge Bay.

For the non singaporeans:

Monthly pay for a recruit in the SCDF starts at a WHOPPING $580

Working full time at mcdonalds for 1 month: around $1800 depending on branch

I'm a Hindu girl and I'm not gonna date or marry any muslim guy chahe wo kitna hi aacha kyu na ho.

— MausamMishra❤️‍🩹 (@iammishrahahaha) December 26, 2022

My many muslim friend has hindu bf ...so no need of bringing religion in this ...it's matter of choice Thousand of such cases ...most of my muslim friend are involved with hindu guy ...

Okay you are okay with them bcoz you are thinking that's okay your parents sent your friends to acquire knowledge but you are letting your friends kafir touch their bodies and have relationship didn't you heard about bhagwa love trap

Maine unka theka nhi leke rakha h ...they are mature enough for their decision... main bs boli ...it's their choice what they want to do...who i am to interfere in their life..🙄🙄🙄🙄

You are sinning and destroying your lineage and honour and thinking it’s fine because your bought up in such a Jahil place

https://x.com/saniaak15870748/status/1607791058125193221?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

"Only Allah can judge me" If someone is openly committing evil they need to be called out .. Openly committing evil normalizes it and encourages other to do the same .Prophet ﷺ said: "Whosoever of you sees an evil, let him change it with his hand; and if he is not able to do

https://x.com/hussnainali17/status/1607798729557553152?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

I am a Muslim girl & I thank you from bottom of my heart that you keep yourself away from our homes & aren't like Renu Hussain, Seema Naqvi & ilk who married successful Muslim ministers.

Lol why are you acting so innocent , so many cases of girl being mur*ered in love jihad. Why shoudl any hindu girl marry muslim.

https://x.com/nausheenme/status/1607790539415617537?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

I am jain guy and i am ready to any girl irresepective of any religion par sala koi mile to sahi 😭😭

https://x.com/darshankshir1/status/1607438311605555202?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

Thank you very much for saving our Muslim boys out there in India from illegal marriage (acc to shariah) and Zina!!!Queen in my eyes 💫 I don't know why Muslims are getting offended by this statement?

https://x.com/apnakaaamkar/status/1607641904740708352?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

What makes you think any muslim guy would prefer a bigoted mind over their own beauties? Even if you beg you simply dont stand a chance.

https://x.com/azam_sheriff50/status/1607809766054567938?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

When you get beaten and killed by your husband, but atleast he is a hindu

https://x.com/kalakaryash07/status/1607814357987086336?s=46&t=eWZCtxXtmQ21i7cxr1ZW8g

oops i put this in the wrong hole

I am gratified that President Halimah Yacob has weighed in on the cases of older men committing sexual crimes against children (Male feminists above 50 should not be spared caning, timely to review law: President Halimah, Dec 19).

At the heart of the problem is the sexual desire of these men overriding their rational thinking and morals. It is unclear how much of this is due to nature (the natural wiring of their brain) or nurture (their upbringing and their environment).

While enhancing sentences for offences against vulnerable charges seems logical to combat this, I suggest that we also consider castration for offenders as a possible solution.

Castration could be chemical (which is temporary and can be time-limited) or surgical (which is permanent). Judicial discretion on using it could be exercised for first-time offenders. It could even be made a condition for parole.

Our learned jurists and medical professionals could study this method more deeply, as it is practised in other countries.

Lim Ee Koon (Dr)

Many in Singapore would have heard of the infamous incident along Orchard Road in June 2021, where an ex-Ngee Ann Poly lecturer confronted an interracial couple and made racist remarks towards them. Unfortunately, another interracial couple had another harrowing experience at Orchard Central recently.

One of the victims, Joseph (not his real name) told Mothership that the couple were on the shopping mall's second floor in the afternoon of Dec. 18 when an unknown man spat in their direction. Joseph said he and his girlfriend had just walked out from the Uniqlo clothing store when an unknown man walked past them fr0m the opposite direction and reportedly spat on him. Joseph, who had never seen the man before, described him as a Chinese man in his mid-20s. This took him by complete surprise and he stopped in his tracks to take stock of what had just happened.

"I'm accustomed to hearing racist things, mostly micro-aggressions stemming from ignorance, by someone whom I somewhat know. But this was the first time a complete random stranger had the audacity to do something like this."

Dumbfounded, Joseph only realised he was not imagining things, and that the man did indeed spit on him, after his girlfriend exclaimed "what the f*ck".

"You shouldn't be with a Chinese girl"

Joseph, who turned around and asked the man if he had just spat on him, said the man went on a tirade and reportedly exclaimed "you shouldn't be with a Chinese girl" and "that should be my girl". The man then spat at Joseph once more, pointed his middle finger, and quickly took off, ducking into Uniqlo. ( wtf )

While the spit did not land on him this time around, this riled Joseph up. Trying to gather himself, he recounted that taking a photo or video of the man did not cross his mind at that time, as all he could think about was whether he should chase after the man. He ultimately decided against doing so, and said he lost sight of the man after he headed down the escalator in Uniqlo.

The incident left Joseph with a mix of emotions, and he said: "I didn't know what to do. [I] got so angry that I teared up." "Apart from the racism, it was the toxic masculinity [where he felt a] sense of entitlement towards a woman, referring to her as an object or property to lay claim to, that triggered me quite a bit and left me disgusted."

Realising that there was a CCTV pointed in their direction which had likely captured the interaction, Joseph approached a security guard to ask if he could have access to the footage so that he can make a police report. While the security guard declined his request, Joseph went ahead and made a police report. He lodged the report at Orchard Neighbourhood Police Centre at around 3:50pm on the same day, according to the report seen by Mothership.

Joseph said the security guard called him later, informing him that they have footage of the incident and it will be handed over to the police. An investigation officer also updated him and said the police are currently reviewing the footage to identify the man.

Mothership has contacted the police for comment.

Joseph said he hopes that the man be brought to task by sharing his experience. This, he says, will not only send a "firm and clear message" to people that such behaviour comes with legal repercussions, but more importantly prevent such incidents from happening again.

r/sg Thread (CW: autism)

Why do Chinese men feel insecure about inter racial?

Hey fellas, found the fricking racist right here.

its not just chinese men, there are these kinds of men from all races. And pls consider adding the word "some" in between Do & chinese.

Koreans do it worse, if you’re a dark skinned foreigner dating one of their girls.

Classic racist response

Singapore has an incel issue that no one's talking about

I brought this up on the countless posts about men acting obscene around women or couples in Singapore and got downmarseyd to heck.

The typical /r/Singapore tai chi comment

“There’s not much crime so you see it more. But it doesn’t happen much compared to other countries.”

It’s like saying “I have cancer. But it’s just stage 2 compared to my friend who has stage 4. So I don’t need to do anything about it or think it’s a problem!”

This sub can be such an echo chamber sometimes

I also find it interesting that people in this thread are saying “incel” (which could be true) but seems like a racial dispute more than anything…

Edit: seriously don’t get why this sub is so adverse to any form of criticism. May the downmarseys be a case and point of how people just portray life to be perfect and can’t accept that there’s any form of problem or issue.

Oh look, it's the shit-stirring JHK WordsonLim whining and bitching about Singapore and Singaporeans again. Malaysia is such a perfect country, eh JHK? Why are you so obsessed with Singapore?

| This sub can be such an echo chamber sometimes

Literally no one is forcing you to be here. Don't you have institutionalised racism to fight against in your own country? Imagine defending a country while living under 21st century apartheid. Stockholm syndrome at its best.

[bunch of links about malayisan male feminists]

I live in both countries, and have been doing so for many years. If you notice my comments I criticise Malaysia probably harsher than I do any other country.

And I’ve openly admitted to the faults of Malaysia countless times. And to your comment, thank you for pointing out the cases of sexual crimes in Malaysia, as well as how child marriages is a troubling issue as well.

I find it honestly weird how triggered you get by my comments. Honestly. If I trigger you so much I’m happy to block you so you don’t need to worry about me and I don’t need you to try and control my opinion.

Ironic coming from someone constantly triggered about other countries that you're always on here. Says a lot about you.

I just told you that I live in SG, why wouldn’t I want to go on this subreddit?

But it seems you can’t handle that my opinion might be different from yours, so you constantly attack me every time my name comes up on here.

Also you listing all the different sexual crimes in Malaysia as if it’s some competition. I never said Malaysia had no crime vs Singapore. I’m just pointing out what I see. That’s all. I feel you’re angry at me but not sure what about 🤔.

If the other commenters can have a civil conversation why can’t you?…

I also find it interesting that people in this thread are saying “incel” (which could be true) but seems like a racial dispute more than anything…

It's not a pure racial dispute. But its most definitely racially motivated as well. Incel behaviour and other extreme mindsets like racism, chauvinism and even fringe ideologies are quite closely correlated.

Specifically, this guy is one of those people still hanging on to prejudices against darker skinned ethnicities. Especially the old trope that "our pure fair skinned" ladies should be "protected from darker skinned males". I'm willing to bet that a Chinese girl dating a white guy is more palatable to this racist.

By the way, the above trope I mentioned isn't exclusive to East Asian communities (which can be very racist).

Its also seen in the West where incels, neo-Nazis and general racists think that "hyper sexualised black men" are "preying on white women".

/r/Aznidentity hates WMAF couples as much as they do Indian Male-Chinese Female couples. They are mostly in the west but there are a few Sinkies in there and they basically have the attitude of “Asian women can only date Asian men but Asian men can date whoever they want. If you disagree you are RACIST TOWARDS ASAINS”

Funny that Crazy Rich Asians takes place in a Southeast Asian country but there is hardly any Southeast Asian representation besides token characters such as food vendors and shopkeepers. That's the Americanoid worldview of Asia forya.

— Comrade Confucius (@confucian_the) December 24, 2022

Doing some last minute Christmas shopping and saw this

Probably a nothingburger to westoids but ngl I've not seen a synagogue yet here in Singapore since apparently we only have 3

Merry, merry Christmas, lonely, lonely Christmas?

It doesn't have to be.

One couple in Singapore are looking to make Christmas a little cheerier for those who're feeling a tad lonesome during the festive season.

In a video posted to TikTok on Monday (Dec 19), David Loh and Esther Chua basically sent out an "open jio" to everyone for their pizza party on Christmas Eve.

"Many of you don't know but Christmas is a time when the lonely get lonelier," said Chua, 25, in the clip.

Loh also shared his experience of spending the last few Christmas seasons alone, where he felt "so lonely, and so sad".

"I can't imagine what that would feel like if you're already struggling mentally and you have no one else," added the 26-year-old art gallery manager.

That feeling of loneliness struck a chord with Loh, who got together with Chua, a social media manager, in April this year.

Said Loh: "The funny thing is, the past two years I just didn't happen to get any invitations. I know a lot of people but I wasn't close to them.

"So I guess the loneliness is amplified, when you know [many] people yet you have no one else to spend it with. And I hadn't met Esther then!"

Extending the invitation to their pizza party, the couple shared that there's "no huge agenda and no huge programme" to the event.

"So if you're free and you're alone and you have no one to spend it with, we want to invite you to a pizza party," said Chua.

"We just don't want you to be alone!" added Loh emphatically.

And it appears there are plenty of lonely souls out there seeking company this Christmas.

Speaking to AsiaOne, Loh shared that response to the invitation has been enthusiastic. They have already filled up the initial 15 spots planned although many more have expressed interest.

"We didn't want the group to be too big as it is hard to have [proper] conversations and people might feel out of place," said Loh, who intends to hold the function at a faith-based art gallery located near City Hall which he manages.

But he assured that the event, which would likely include board games and "heart-to-heart-talks", will be kept secular.

"Our heart is really to just create a space for people feeling lonely to hang out and chill."

Their generous act has also touched the hearts of netizens, with several appearing to take them up on their offer.

SHOW MORE

I’m absolutely livid.

I’ve been living here for over 2 years - husband and I both moved here in 2020 from Sydney - bang in the middle of the pandemic - for both of our respective jobs. Found a place (was heaps easier than it is nowadays as no one was really coming into Singapore then), settled in to our home and our jobs, got an adorable pup - proceeded to try to make Singapore home.

My sister and her husband moved here from India about a month ago. And they’ve started looking for houses which is admittedly SO MUCH MORE difficult now than 2 years ago. They’ve also been rejected a few times - someone would usually say the landlord gave the house to someone with a better profile - which is totally fair! It’s your house/apartment - you give it to whoever you want.

But today, one of the Agents said Landlord wants no idol worship in the apartment. Not very happy with Indians lah but will give to you as long as no idol worship.

WHAT THE ACTUAL F? isn’t this discrimination, how dare you tell people how to live their lives - is this even legal. Who in the heck do they think they are?

You can make your city as clean and green as you want but nothing changes as long as SCUM like this live in this city.

I’ve always wondered why Singapore has never felt home. Now i know why - this underlying level of discrimination that has always existed is the reason why. Sometimes obvious, sometimes not,

EFF YOU TOO, SINGAPORE

I'm sorry but Indians just generally do not have a good reputation in Singapore and around the world for that matter.

As for your question on what the actual frick - landlords have total control over what goes on inside their property. You rent on their terms, not yours.

Remember - renters will always lose.

Where did you get that idea or is it how you personally feel about Indians? Seems like a very subjective or your own personal take on reputation of Indians…

Not everyone is the same just like not every landlord or agent is the same. A large majority of them are nice and respectful and there are a few bad apples.

The OP has the right to be pissed for being treated like that, everyone should have the right to feel like that when discriminated but the OP is also overreacting a bit and doing that here on Reddit is pointless.

Probably because you haven’t provided services to them before.

My wife works in the healthcare industry. Among the myriad of patients she attends to, the “fairer” Indians are usually more yayapapaya with the service staff.

Not saying that all are like that, but i can see why it’s been stereotyped.

Can concur. North Indians especially those CECA types are a pain to deal with. Low pain tolerance, bargain about pricing, always unapologetically late, rude to staff, compare pricing to India’s pricing. I always refer out lol.

I am a landlord and I'm sorry but put it bluntly, there is a good reason why we avoid people from a certain race. The maintainence, the neighbour complaints, the damages are just too much effort. Sorry but not really sorry. I tried once to be accepting but got burnt.

And who the heck do you think you are? I've had racist encounters in both Australia and India, from whites and Indians. What the actual F?

And hence we can be racist too?

That’s your conclusion?

Then what do yiu want me to conclude?

What did you conclude from OP’s post?

That her sister experienced racism here?

wow you sound like someone who hates all apples just because you had 1 bad one.

Just because you close your eyes doesn't mean the problem doesn't exist. It is a fact white people are worshipped in Singapore - this is one valid truth. Do you mean a people who consciously worships one race can't have the capacity to discriminate others?

im sure these are the "im indian and im always right" kinda CECA i abhor so much. bye sexy Indian dude

Sg lost a valuable talent today, but luckily there will always be more

More to displace local talent!!! Now more Hong Kong!!! We sinkie all very happy!!! 6.9 million by 2020 WOOOOO. Haiz how did 61.23% of eligible voters vote for this sia lj

Try England. They love your curries there enough to make one of your people reign. You guys must done something right.

The cost of housing may be the biggest factor

The list of things for which Japan enjoys a global reputation includes delicious food, cutting-edge technology, an oversupply of karaoke bars and an undersupply of babies. In 1990 it published a record-low fertility rate for the previous year—the so-called “1.57 shock”. For years it has been seen as a harbinger of how rich societies will age and shrink.

Much of Asia has now caught up with or overtaken it. Japan’s fertility rate of 1.3 in 2020, the latest year for which comparable figures are available, puts it on a par with mainland China, according to the Population Research Bureau, an American outfit. China’s birth rate is likely already to have fallen behind Japan’s: there were 10.6m Chinese births last year, down from 12m in 2020, a decline of 11%. The number of births fell only 3% in Japan.

Japanese fertility is still ultra-low compared with almost any society in human history. Yet it is now higher than that of any well-off East Asian or South-East Asian economy. The numbers in Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, South Korea and Taiwan ranged between 0.8 and 1.1 in 2020 (see chart). Nor is this a temporary blip caused by the pandemic: Japan’s figure was higher than all those countries in 2019, too.

Rich, baby-averse Asian countries in the region have three things in common. First, their people rarely have children outside marriage. Only around 2% of births in Japan and South Korea are to unmarried mothers, the lowest levels in the oecd, a club of rich countries. In wealthy Western countries that figure is typically between 30% and 60%. In China, the few who become pregnant out of wedlock are often denied benefits. The region’s decline in births has closely tracked a decline in marriages. The age at which people commit to a lifetime of entanglement has also been rising, further delaying child-bearing.

A second shared factor is expensive schooling. Pricey private tutoring and other wallet-emptying forms of “shadow education”, as such extras are known, are common in East Asia. The most frequent reason cited by Japanese couples for having fewer children is the cost of raising and educating them. Lucy Crehan, an education researcher, says that these problems might be even worse in other parts of Asia. Japanese pupils face their first high-stakes exams only at the age of 15. In contrast, children in Shanghai and Singapore must take such tests as early as primary school, piling on the parental pressure to perform and adding to the family’s tuition bills.

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SINGAPORE - A former chief financial officer of commodity firm Agritrade International duped 16 financial institutions worldwide into providing her company with millions of dollars in trade financing, causing losses of US$469 million (S$631 million).

The financial institutions, which included major banks from Japan, South Korea, India and Taiwan, incurred the losses between January 2017 and November 2019.

This amount, described by the prosecution as "unprecedented and staggering", is almost as high as the $633.3 million victims in Singapore lost to all scams in 2021.

On Friday, Singaporean Lulu Lim Beng Kim, 63, pleaded guilty to 12 charges, including cheating and falsification of accounts. Twenty-four similar charges were taken into consideration.

Seeking a sentence of 19½ years, Deputy Public Prosecutor Nicholas Khoo said: "The losses caused in this case are unprecedented and staggering. Singapore's reputation has been tarnished as a result."

While serving as the chief financial officer of Agritrade, Lim instructed her subordinates to submit financial statements which were unaudited and false to the financial institutions.

These documents were required by the financial institutions to assess how much credit they would extend to Agritrade.

The financial institutions would then disburse these sums to Agritrade's suppliers for the purchase and sale of goods and other purposes.

Agritrade or the customers of its supplied goods were then expected to pay back the financial institutions at a later date.

In total, the 16 financial institutions disbursed more than US$586.5 million to the suppliers, Agritrade International and its subsidiaries.

Investigations revealed that members of the commodity firm's senior management had helped to incorporate these subsidiaries or sat on their board of directors.

In January 2020, Agritrade, whose business spans palm oil and coal mining, came under financial strain due to the collapse in oil and coal prices.

The company also faced allegations of fraud directed against Mr Ng Xinwei, its chief executive, and his father, Mr Ng Say Pek, who founded the business.

On Jan 15, 2020, the Commercial Affairs Department started investigations against Agritrade. Lim left Singapore for Britain the next day and did not respond to multiple attempts by the police to contact her over the next year.

She was arrested in January 2021, after the police received information that she was in the United Arab Emirates.

On Friday, Mr Noor Marican, who heads law firm Marican & Associates, pleaded for mercy on behalf of Lim.

He said: "She takes full responsibility for her actions and makes no excuse for her conduct. She is of age. She has pleaded guilty at the earliest possible time."

Lim, who appeared in court via video link, buried her face in her hands as Mr Marican spoke.

In his mitigation plea, he said Lim claimed she was manipulated by Mr Ng Say Pek and that there was no evidence she had accrued personal benefits.

In response, DPP Khoo said he had taken into account the fact that Lim had drawn an annual salary of about $400,000 before bonuses.

He said: "A submission like this has force if she was a data entry clerk who had just graduated from school.

"The accused is a local graduate with a Business Administration degree. She is not an uneducated individual. She was the No. 2 or No. 3 person in the company."

District Judge Kow Keng Siong said he required some time to mete out a sentence and adjourned the case for sentencing.

Lim is the first person in connection to the case to be sentenced.

She will be back in court on Jan 17, 2023.

For each count of cheating, an offender can be jailed for up to three years, fined, or both.

The offence of falsifying accounts carries a jail term of up to 10 years, a fine or both.

https://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/courts-crime/singaporean-duped-major-banks-worldwide-causing-unprecedented-631m-in-losses

Singapore has once again been ranked as the most expensive city to live in, sharing the top spot with New York City this year, according to the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU).

This is the eighth time in 10 years that Singapore topped the list. Both Singapore and New York City knocked last year's leader, Tel Aviv, down to third place thanks to higher inflation and stronger currencies, the EIU reported in its new Worldwide Cost of Living survey of 172 cities.

According to the survey, the average price of goods in local currency terms surged by 8.1% this year, citing a poll that the firm conducted between Aug. 16 and Sept. 16. That's up from the 3.5% rise in prices reported by the EIU's 2021 survey.

Supply chain disruptions from China's zero-Covid policy and the Russia-Ukraine war were two key reasons for higher inflation this year, Upasana Dutt, head of Worldwide Cost of Living at EIU, told CNBC.

"These two combined together placed a lot more pressure on access to goods and availability of products that account for [the] very basic necessities of people. And both of these together, then drove inflation across the world," she said.

The research and analysis firm found that the steepest price increase was for petrol. On average, petrol prices rose by 22% from the year before.

Oil prices have been "very, very extreme" and "one of the highest that we've ever recorded in the history of our data collection," Dutt said.

High inflation in the U.S.

The U.S. Federal Reserve has raised interest rates by 375 basis points so far this year in light of persistently high inflation, and a smaller rate hike could happen in December.

That has given a significant boost to the U.S. dollar, making goods more expensive.

"New York has appeared in this list for the very first time. So for the U.S. dollar to strengthen so much and get to where it is now, it is quite unusual," Dutt said.

Other cities in the U.S. also rose in the index because of the strong greenback, EIU said.

Los Angeles rose from ninth place in 2021 to fourth this year. San Francisco --- which did not make the top 10 last year --- is now the eighth most expensive city to live in.

Six of the 10 cities that made the biggest jumps were also in the United States. They include Atlanta, San Diego and Boston.

Singapore's top spot came as no surprise.

The country "has the world's highest transport prices, owing to strict government controls on car numbers. It is also among the most expensive cities for clothing, alcohol and tobacco, thanks to its success as a premier location for business investment," the report said.

The city shared the second spot with Paris last year, so it is "very much where it has always been," Dutt said.

Japan and South Korea fall

Cities in countries whose currencies plunged this year were among those that fell in the rankings.

Japan's Osaka is the 43rd most expensive city to live in, a big drop from its 10th position in 2021. And South Korea's Busan fell 25 spots from last year, and is now 106th, EIU data showed.

"Japan and South Korea have also seen currency depreciation, while local-currency inflation in these countries is fairly subdued; this has pushed down the indices for Tokyo and Seoul compared with New York," the report said.

"The Bank of Japan took the view that they would not artificially inflate the currency and they would let it slide so that prices would increase. That's one of the reasons why Osaka and Tokyo have really slowed down [in their rankings]," Dutt said.

Although South Korea made moves to strengthen the won, "investors always call for safer currencies at this point in time and the currency has slipped because of confidence levels," she added.

Biggest jump: Russian cities

The Russian cities of Moscow and St. Petersburg rose by 88 and 70 places respectively --- the two cities with the biggest jumps, the survey showed. Moscow is now in 36th place and St. Petersburg in the 73rd.

"Capital controls, import suppression and the conversion of European gas payments into rubles are supporting the value of the local currency," EIU said.

On top of that, Western sanctions on Russia have led to "extremely high" inflation there, Dutt said.

Inflation outlook for 2023

The silver lining is that inflation is likely to start easing soon, EIU said.

The firm forecast that global inflation will fall from an average of 9.4% this year to 6.5% in 2023.

"Action has been taken to ensure that inflation is curtailed. So next year, we will start seeing the effect of that so prices will be lower," Dutt said. "Much lower than this, but how lower is the question. We definitely expect this level of inflation to ease over 2023."

The top 10

Here are the world's most expensive cities to live in, according to the EIU's 2022 Worldwide Cost of Living survey.

1. TIE --- Singapore

1. TIE --- New York

3. Tel Aviv

4. TIE --- Hong Kong

4. TIE --- Los Angeles

6. Zurich

7. Geneva

8. San Francisco

9. Paris

10. TIE --- Copenhagen

10. TIE --- Sydney

good news for @August, @The_Homocracy and @ThatHoeOverThere

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toa_Payoh_ritual_murders

The Toa Payoh ritual murders took place in Singapore in 1981. On 25 January, the body of a nine-year-old girl was found at a block of public housing flats in the town of Toa Payoh, and two weeks later, the body of a ten-year-old boy was found nearby.

The murders were masterminded by Adrian Lim, a self-styled healer who pretended to have supernatural powers and scammed people for years. He had also been sexually assaulting female clients, often preying on younger women from impoverished backgrounds. Two clients later engaged in a relationship with him. They were: Tan Mui Choo, who he married, and Hoe Kah Hong, who was his "holy wife"---a term he used to manipulate women into having s*x with him. Lim subjected them to extensive physical, sexual, mental and financial abuse, including forcing Tan into prostitution, for years before instigating the killings in which they participated.

In 1980, Lim drugged and r*ped a woman who filed r*pe charges against him. To derail police investigations, Lim decided to kill children, and made Tan and Hoe help him. Lim also sexually assaulted the girl victim. The trio were arrested after the police found a trail of blood leading from the body of the boy to their flat. Although the case name suggested ritualistic murders,^[1]^^[2]^ the defendants said they did not conduct prayers, burning of joss sticks, ringing of bells, or any other rituals during the killings.^[3]^

The 41-day trial was the second longest to have been held in the courts of Singapore at the time. None of the defendants denied their guilt. Their appointed counsels pleaded diminished responsibility, arguing that the accused were mentally ill and could not be held entirely responsible for the killings. Their experts, doctors and psychologists, analysed the defendants and concluded that they had exhibited schizophrenia, and depressions of the psychotic and manic order. The prosecution's expert, however, refuted testimonies and argued that all three individuals were in full control of their mental faculties when they planned and carried out the murders. The judges agreed with the prosecution's case and sentenced the trio to death. While on death row, the women appealed to the Privy Council in London and pleaded for clemency from the President of Singapore to no avail. Lim did not seek any pardons. The three were hanged on 25 November 1988.

The murders shocked the public in Singapore. Reports of the trio's deeds and the court proceedings were closely followed and remained prominent in the Singaporean consciousness for several years. Twice, movie companies tried to capitalise on the sensation generated by the murders by producing motion pictures based on the killings; however, critics panned both films for indulging in gratuitous s*x and violence, and the movies performed poorly at the box office. The actions and behaviour of the three killers were studied by academics in the criminal psychology field, and the rulings set by the courts became local case studies for diminished responsibility.