Silly/Odd News Stories from around the World

[Sumeragi]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

*looks at wallet* Well, at least they are filling it. Though I wish they have a better work attitude.

Japan is even worse.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Sumeragi

Japan is even worse.

Depends. I worked with two Japanese companies in the past, one has the same attitude as the Koreans, while the other was a whole lot more humble. The latter sent a manager to work with us and we are to teach him everything so he was more patient and polite, so was the management; they were stirict, but reasonable.

The former are no different and are as big as the morons I meet day to day taking ego trips and lveraging on corporate rank to suppress disagreement, as well as actively scapegoating the lower-ranked staff. Just because we are temps and contractors they don't want to listen to the various safety and logistics chokes we brought up.

[Sumeragi]

Worse as in I don't put much in the future of the youngsters.

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Sumeragi

Worse as in I don't put much in the future of the youngsters.

Not even those snobs with top honours from Seoul Uni?

[Cosmic Eagle]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

You grossly overestimate the creativity of people. Value adding in technology always has to do with peecision working and increasing man-hours. And it is counted by the production plant's manufacture rate of qualified products. Goven the brevity of market dominance in the era of consumer electronics, we need a R&D base too.

ROK still manufactures tech products, it could go the way of Germany if it wanted to. Singapore doesn't have enough place to build the plants;Energizer recently left their last Singapore plant and went Vietnam.

Yes...but how are you going to value add finance and shit? Because seriously, what other service industry drives the economy here

They can get to skip NS conpletely. We can't.

What.....I never knew being born post 1990 was a free pass out of conscription....wonder why that never happened to me

Worse as in I don't put much in the future of the youngsters.

Neither is there much future in said generation here.

[Cosmic Eagle]

Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf

It depends on what you mean by "heavy dependence on services". Let's see if we're on the same page.

Singapore GDP by industry
GDP (2011) at current prices ($m): $326,832.4
Goods producing industries, 2011 ($m): $81,684.5

So, manufacturing accounted for about 25 per cent of GDP in 2011, with services taking up the rest.

That seems like heavy dependence. But what if we compare this mix with that of other developed countries? United States manufacturing makes up 12.2 per cent of GDP, according to figures here. I can't find comparable figures for Germany on short notice. But according to this blogger's chart, German manufacturing accounted for roughly 21 per cent of its GDP in 2008.

In short, it would appear that Singapore is not that much more dependent on services as a typical developed economy. This trend can be observed in most advanced economies, as explained here.

EDIT:
Scratch the above. This handy chart on Wikipedia, compiled from IMF data, makes for easier comparison.

GDP sector comparisons, by nominal GDP (2012)
World: Services: 63.6%, Industry: 30.5%, Agriculture: 5.9%
US: Services: 79.7%, Industry: 19.1%, Agriculture: 1.2%
Germany: Services: 71.1%, Industry: 28.1%, Agriculture: 0.8%

Just for fun, let's look at India:
India: Services: 65%, Industry: 18%, Agriculture: 17%


So, does it still seem as though Singapore is too heavily dependent on services? Compared to the rest of the world, it doesn't seem to be the case, does it? As for why the global economy as a whole is moving towards greater dependence on services, that's another topic altogether. The simplistic answer is that services provide better value add. For each dollar spent on delivering a service, it is much easier to produce many more dollars worth of output than if we spent that dollar on manufacturing a product. Better value for money, so to speak.

But value-add is not necessarily the same as productivity, as I illustrated above, and that's something we have to grapple with, because we want to improve people's wages, and the only sustainable way to do that is to improve each worker's productivity.

Then you see the quality of SG's manufacturing vs those of your other examples. See the state of the science sector here vs that in Germany or the US. Sure, services don't require as much specialization as manufacturing but when your manufacturing side isn't fully developed yet and you start to bank on services that doesn't seem right at all.

Services are dependent on transient things like hot money and the whims of investor sheep. Technology, at least when you make them on your own, is yours. Until someone else develops it then you just have to stay ahead. But then again, the way the education scene is here, becoming a scientific power is impossible for this island.

[Sumeragi]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

Not even those snobs with top honours from Seoul Uni?

Talking about Japan. Basically, I don't expect the herbivores to be contributors to society. At least most Koreans are carnivores, even if they are snobbish brats that are nothing compared to the true workers.

[TinyRedLeaf]

Originally Posted by Cosmic Eagle

Then you see the quality of SG's manufacturing vs those of your other examples. See the state of the science sector here vs that in Germany or the US. Sure, services don't require as much specialization as manufacturing but when your manufacturing side isn't fully developed yet and you start to bank on services that doesn't seem right at all.

Services are dependent on transient things like hot money and the whims of investor sheep. Technology, at least when you make them on your own, is yours. Until someone else develops it then you just have to stay ahead. But then again, the way the education scene is here, becoming a scientific power is impossible for this island.

Fully agree. We definitely need to look closer at how we can restructure the economy. And, as someone who works in media, I can't agree more about freeing up our intellectual space, to allow ideas — any idea — to blossom and grow.

[Cosmic Eagle]

Originally Posted by Sumeragi

Talking about Japan. Basically, I don't expect the herbivores to be contributors to society. At least most Koreans are carnivores, even if they are snobbish brats that are nothing compared to the true workers.

Wussy or sociopath...jeez no one's an omnivore anymore it seems

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by Sumeragi

Talking about Japan. Basically, I don't expect the herbivores to be contributors to society. At least most Koreans are carnivores, even if they are snobbish brats that are nothing compared to the true workers.

But herbivorous guys make cute traps! Actually, how would you define a herbivore? I always equate them to hikkikomoris.

Originally Posted by Cosmic Eagle

Services are dependent on transient things like hot money and the whims of investor sheep. Technology, at least when you make them on your own, is yours. Until someone else develops it then you just have to stay ahead. But then again, the way the education scene is here, becoming a scientific power is impossible for this island.

There never was an opportunity at being a science power since independence.

We practically copied everything from the others even our "indigenous" assault rifle is a mix of the Steyr AUG, TAR with a FN style carrier group. And we write banal articles; once I read about NTU researching a new way of blood transfusion using synthetic white blood when it already has been invented 20 years ago.

Originally Posted by Cosmic Eagle

Yes...but how are you going to value add finance and shit? Because seriously, what other service industry drives the economy here
.

By telling more and be more concerned about the customer's financial well-being. Or at least what I was taught when I was an insurance agent.

Originally Posted by TinyRedLeaf

Fully agree. We definitely need to look closer at how we can restructure the economy. And, as someone who works in media, I can't agree more about freeing up our intellectual space, to allow ideas — any idea — to blossom and grow.

The initial fear is that these ideas will lead to political instability and social strife, back during the Cold War where ideas are so polarised that it is easily demonised and mistaken for one another.

Today is a different world, but our governorship still holds onto this ideal. I don't know why, but what I know is that, it will kill us.

[Cosmic Eagle]

Originally Posted by SaintessHeart

We practically copied everything from the others even our "indigenous" assault rifle is a mix of the Steyr AUG, TAR with a FN style carrier group. And we write banal articles; once I read about NTU researching a new way of blood transfusion using synthetic white blood when it already has been invented 20 years ago.

Fact of science research....What you are thinking of, others have already thought of or are thinking now. Is what I learn everytime I do research stuff and check journals and shit.

Only difference is how to convince bigshots that it's a good idea and adopt them (Commercial)

If you hate the commercial sector like me and are purely there for academic knowledge's sake...welp...take the guy's idea and see if you can develop further and further


Then cite the guy lololol. It's how scientists give each other kicks and cash

[Drkz]

Oi. What happened to all the humor? http://en.rocketnews24.com/2013/02/1...-them-on-fire/

[ganbaru]

Special Report: Russia's $50 billion Olympic gamble
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...91K04M20130221

[RRW]

I see that we have semi culture war here

[willx]

Originally Posted by RRW

I see that we have semi culture war here

I don't see what you mean, old chap. We all get along here. Capitalism, ho! TO INDUSTRY!

[RRW]

The Duke of Edinburgh told a nurse from the Philippines that her country must be "half empty" - because so many of her compatriots have come to the UK to work for the NHS.

He made the remark during a visit to Luton and Dunstable Hospital where he unveiled a £5.5m cardiac centre.

"The Philippines must be half empty - you're all here running the NHS," the prince told the nurse, who laughed.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england...herts-21519917

[Drkz]

Originally Posted by ganbaru

Special Report: Russia's $50 billion Olympic gamble
http://www.reuters.com/article/2013/...91K04M20130221

Whats the point in hosting the olympic when all you do is make your country go deeper in debt?

[SaintessHeart]

Originally Posted by willx

I don't see what you mean, old chap. We all get along here. Capitalism, ho! TO INDUSTRY!

YES! For more money! CAPITALISM HO!

[Kudryavka]

Originally Posted by Drkz

Whats the point in hosting the olympic when all you do is make your country go deeper in debt?

Makes your image to the rest of the world look good I guess. There have been nations that do all they can to look all rich and powerful to outsiders, but their own citizens are starving away (not saying that Russia does it, just an example of the will to look good on the outside).

[ganbaru]

Mass. boy, trying to avoid bedtime, calls 911
http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories...02-21-16-09-11