It May Be Stern, But Singapore Attracts More Millionaires Than Anyplace Else

Hamlet said:
I'm relatively happy with the government I receive here in Plymouth, MN.

The littering and other minor issues are at a tolerable level, and we manage to do it with no canings.

If I'm accused of a serious crime, the government has to at least convince 12 other citizens of my guilt, rather than a single government appointed judge.
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That's interesting that Plymouth, MN has its own judical system. Here in corrupt Illinois, I believe the lowest level of gov't which has an independent judicial system is the county level.
 
I've been living in Singapore for 25 years now. When I came to Singapore in 1987, the population was about 2 million. Now it's 6 million. To say it's becoming crowded is an understatement, as when I am in the MRT (subway) every morning going to work, there is literally no room to move.

When I first arrived here, I got a nice 2000 square foot condo for about US$1,200. Now I live in what's called a government HDB flat, about 700 square feet, for close to US2,500/month. What is still inexpensive is the food. We have hawker centers (food courts) everywhere, and to eat a good dinner there can be as low as US$3, so that part is looking good. It's the housing and utilities that are killing people here.

As long as I'm working, it's fine. I'm a PR (Permanent Resident) here, and plan on retiring is a month, and will still continue to spend time here as a retiree, but recently obtained a retirement visa (10 years) for Malaysia called Malaysia My 2nd Home (MM2H), which has a cost of living a fraction of what it is in Singapore, and the people there genuinely seem happier and less rushed. I say this because every morning on the MRT, I see faces that do not look happy to be there, and even before getting to work, I feel a little stressed.

It's true the crime is low. Children as young as 8 years old ride on the subway alone. Old retirees can safely walk on the street alone late at night. However, the common phrase here is "you work until you die", because people cannot afford to retire, unless you're wealthy.

I like Singapore, and it is home. But for the quality of life, it's definitely not where you want to retire. I have US Medicare, with the Part B, Supplementary, and Prescription Drug. I can't use it here, so eventually I would like to live in the States. Where, I have no idea. I have no roots in my own country. That's my next big decision.

Rob
 
Rob said:
I can't use it here, so eventually I would like to live in the States. Where, I have no idea. I have no roots in my own country. That's my next big decision.

Rob
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Sounds like a Road Trip in the USA!!! :dance:
If you do that, the Road Trip forum on Trip Advisor can help Road Trips Forum - TripAdvisor (transparency: I'm a Destination Expert for Denver on Trip Advisor)
 
Hamlet said:
There is no right to bear arms, and their bill of rights has much greater limitations on speech, assembly, and the press.

I'm particulary fond of the name of their censorship board-- "Ministry of Information, Communication and the Arts"

Orwell couldn't have named it better.

Order comes at a pretty steep cost to liberty, but hey, the taxes are low. :)
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I feel a lot safer in Singapore than I do visiting just about any other country I've been to.

As a frequent visitor, I have never had an issue with censorship in Singapore - and couldn't find anyone I know who lives there or Singaporean friends in HK who has any problems with it either.

And if people don't like living there, leaving is as easy as getting on a plane with no painful renunciation of citizenship/extortionate exit tax. In many respects, the right to leave a country is one of the ultimate tests of individual freedom.
 
kramer said:
Another nice thing about Hong Kong (and maybe Singapore?) is that it is a free port. There are essentially no import duties. Here in the Philippines, if one orders something shipped from the USA (or anywhere else), there will almost always be customs to pay (with unpredictable amounts) but not so in Hong Kong.

I know one guy living in Manila who maintains a drop box for receiving mail and packages in Hong Kong just for this purpose. Then, the next time he passes through Hong Kong, he will bring everything back to the Philippines in his personal luggage, which is easy to get through Filipino customs.

When I was in Singapore, the cop cars had a logo painted on the car that said, "Low crime does not mean no crime." Basically, crime is so low that some folks get careless, so that is a reminder. I have really enjoyed my time in Singapore and seems to me much better than Hong Kong for "livability". But, as far as living long term in Singapore, it seems pretty expensive. You have to pay some kind of duty to own a car but I wouldn't want to own one there anyway.

Hong Kong rent is simply out of this world. My good friend lives there and was searching for something "low cost" and so got an out-of-the-way 500 square foot apartment for $3000 per month. This is partly due to high demand and partly due to Chinese controls on capital.
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Going to Hong Kong for vacation in 2 weeks, expecting to see some tiny hotel rooms.

It's better than the 100K people in Kowloon living in a bird cage !

Hong Kong housing crisis puts poor in cages - SFGate
 
Hong Kong was my first stop in Asia ever and the start of my initial 7 month long Asia journey in 2007. I got a private single bed air conditioned room with a television in a highly recommended hostel in Kowloon area, shared bathroom.

But I have to admit I was surprised when the room was only 1.75 meters by 2.0 meters. My arms could touch both walls simultaneously in the narrower dimension. There was no window. And I think I had to take an elevator and walk through a corridor just to get up to the place. It worked out OK because I hardly spent any time inside during my few days in Hong Kong.

That was in 2007, $24 a night. I just looked it up and the same room is now (5.7 years later) $34 per night (Dragon Hostel).
 
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haha said:
A country with essentially no resources other than its people and its crossroads location shows how it can be done.
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Many years ago I heard a talk by Malcolm Forbes. His point was that a country's most important resource was its people. Government's job was to make sure the people could develop to their fullest potential and then get out of the way.
 
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