Critical Spectator started a store! Visit VeryWell.sg This is only the beginning and, if all goes well, you can expect to see much more in the coming months – more products and more categories. Purchases…
Critical Spectator started a store! Visit VeryWell.sg I’ve always thought no writer should depend on others paying him for his writing but rather that his work should be supported by a valuable business of unrelated…
N ew Straits times fired off two pieces in the past few days, again stirring the situation in bilateral relations between Malaysia and Singapore. First, the newspaper published a report from a talk about the…
Y ou might be forgiven for thinking that the latest barrage of accusations against the Singapore’s death penalty is just another fit thrown by a foreign NGO – as it has happened over many years.…
A fter two years of mounting tensions, US president, Donald Trump, has signed the Phase 1 of a comprehensive trade agreement with China, scoring not only a vital political win for himself but a considerable…
F or all the hysteria pouring out from all corners of the world about impending World War 3, 8th of January 2020 was remarkably uneventful. And as the US President Donald Trump has finished his…
H ysteria took hold of the mass media of the world after the bold airstrike carried out by US forced in Baghdad killed the legendary commander of the elite Iranian Quds Force, responsible for the…
W hen Boris Johnson took over the reins of the country this July I didn’t think much of it aside, perhaps, from a certain pity for the man who was given British premiership in easily…
I was in the midst of writing another post in an attempt to clarify many misconceptions people express in online comments about the application of Singapore’s anti fake news law when it dawned on me…
L ast year I published a highly popular article in which I explained why Mahathir must step down. It was no laughing matter then – the new Malaysian government kicked off its term with several…
T he little city-state of Singapore is ahead of the curve yet again. As the world is debating how to deal with the growing threat of fake news, it has already devised and implemented a…
R elations between the US and North Korea are heading for the lowest low since the leaders of two countries exchanged insults in the early 2018. Since then it seemed that a sudden reversal –…
A s the controversy over PMD ban continues, I have a few other observations to make as a result of it – about the government and about the public – and the underappreciation of innovation.…
S omething truly amazing happened last Thursday (or so it seemed). Malaysian Prime Minister, Dr. Mahathir Mohamad announced approval for the Rail Transit System between Johor and Singapore. Malaysia, he said, would proceed with the…
F or months of increasingly more violent protests in Hong Kong Western leaders have warned, threatened and lectured China on how it should behave towards protesters who were – in their judgement – merely expressing…
M onths go by and I keep wondering how big a hole the protesters are going to dig for themselves and their city. Despite their seemingly good intentions their actions won’t go down in history…
S ingapore’s favorite “oppressed” child, Kirsten Han published a response to many allegations circulating about her and her buddies. In it she paints herself as a victim of state-bullying and that her and her companions’…
S ingapore’s location, coupled with reasonable, friendly governance, has long attracted foreign business to the island. But, as it has grown in prosperity and importance, it has also brought lots of attention – not always…
A German businessman has just been sentenced to five and a half years jail in Singapore for promoting overseas child sex tours in the Philippines – caught by undercover policemen who posed as potential participants.…
F ew topics are as delicate as the subject of how much politicians should be compensated for their services. It appears that vast majority of people all over the world reject the notion that their…
W hen normally peaceful protests in Hong Kong turned into a raid on Legislative Council on July 1st – two weeks after Carrie Lam declared suspension of the controversial Extradition Bill – I found the…
A nother dramatic day in America. At least 20 people dead, two dozen more wounded in mass-shooting in a Walmart in El Paso. Among other reasons – like ideological lunacy of many segments of the…
D ays go by and protests in Hong Kong appear to increase in severity and irrationality, instead of dying down. I have explained here why they are quite senseless and will only result in more…
Y ou would be hard-pressed to find a day when another apocalyptic piece of news about the state of our planet doesn’t hit the headlines. The narrative of impending doom is gushing out from every…
I have been observing the events in Hong Kong quite silently for a while, expecting them to die down with time. But it seems that the tensions are going to last for a while longer,…
T his may be my most controversial article yet (at least to some) – but precisely because it may be considered controversial is why I believe it is important to publish it. So, let’s begin…
S ix tankers as well as Saudi oil facilities were damaged in a spate of attacks in May and June. While the US and its allies are claiming Iran was responsible, the world’s only theocracy…
I f anybody thought Beijing’s assurances that it does not seek dominance over others but simply wants to be a respected and valued member of the international community are genuine, then these hopes surely have…
T he two gentlemen exchanging laughs in the lead photo to this article are, of course, Lee Kuan Yew himself and Robert Gates, then Defence Secretary of the United States. The photo was taken at…
C hina has lost its nerve. A series of statements issued by government officials – including Xi Jinping – and state media last week show that either the Chinese are desperate to reverse the course…
I it’s been almost a year since Mahathir took back the reins of his country, inspiring hopes for a positive change after a decade under corrupt Najib. Unfortunately, however, as months go by, he keeps…
O ver 200 people dead (as of this moment), another few hundred injured in eight blasts targeting churches and hotels this Easter morning in Sri Lanka. This adds to the toll of thousands of deaths…
S peaking candidly about work and business can get you in trouble – though it isn’t really a major surprise in the world where so many people get offended about almost everything. This time it’s…
W hile selfish and egotistical free speech “advocates” are running around lamenting introduction of the laws aimed at combating online misinformation, I thought it would be quite useful to sideline their paranoia for a moment…
I t’s hardly a secret that I am hugely impressed by the small city-state of Singapore – what I often present in my articles here. But few people realize or understand why that is –…
W henever I think that Malaysian politicians have, perhaps, concluded their barrage of ludicrous assaults against their most valuable neighbor, they reignite controversy with another thoughtless comment – with the main culprit often being the…
T he never-ending spectacle of Malaysian provocations, which has been going on for the past months, is increasingly less worrying and more entertaining – even if it’s a completely irrational waste of time. Does anybody…
I freely admit that what you’re about to read borders on political fiction. There’s absolutely no realistic chance of a non-Malay taking over the reins as Malaysia’s leader right now. However, it may also be…
Y esterday Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health released a study in which it claims that “the United States, on a per capita basis, spends much more on health care than other developed countries; the…
C ondescension in reports about Asia is nothing new in the Western world. But one is forced to recognize things are getting out of hand if articles published in one of Britain’s leading magazines on…
I wasn’t planning on writing another article about the tensions between the two neighbors within little over than a week. But just when I thought the situation is going to wind down, that the posturing…
W hy, dear Malaysia, why? Why do you keep doing this? To Singapore – and to yourself. Why the repeated attacks over completely meaningless issues? In a follow up to my earlier post about why…
U nfortunately for all those who hoped that the old fox has mellowed over the years, Dr. M needed just a few months to drag everybody back to the 80s and 90s. Given his reconciliation…
B ritain chose to leave and the EU leaders are now losing sleep over a possible fallout from this decision. Here are a few reasons why the ‘domino effect’ that is now discussed in the…
(This article was originally published ahead of the Brexit referendum in 2016 but as it remains relevant even in 2020, I am republishing and promoting it again.) T hree weeks away from the referendum about…
M any discussions about relationships these days inevitably lead to a debate why so many intelligent, successful women stay single. What happened to the men? Where are they? Does female success scare them away? Do…
T he times of peace are upon us! The world rejoices, Iranians are celebrating in the streets of Tehran, John Kerry and Federica Mogherini hail it as a milestone achievement. But is it really? Before…
I t’s very popular to bash the euro these days. Many economists and economic commentators crawl out from dark corners of their offices, triumphantly shouting – “I told you!”. And media love a scapegoat you…
A fter Greeks overwhelmingly voted against Troika’s terms for extended debt relief assistance the world is holding its breath, waiting what’s going to happen next. Will Greece leave the Eurozone? Will EU countries bend to…