Here are some views about this project.
http://news.asiaone.com/News/the%2BStraits%2BTimes/Story/A1Story20100126-194428.html
http://news.asiaone.com/News/the%2BStraits%2BTimes/Story/A1Story20100126-194428.html
Monday, January 25, 2010
Stuyvesant Town, Manhatten
The Government Investment Corporation of Singapore (GIC) invested in a Manhatten project called Stuyvesant Town.
Survey: Educating the Young
I have updated the survey results with 63 replies.
My personal views on this topic are expressed here.
My personal views on this topic are expressed here.
Password security
The experts have advised on secure passwords, to prevent hacking, as follows:
- at least 8 characters long
- does not contain all or part of one's name
- mix of upper and lower case characters
- does not have repeated numbers or characters side by side
- password must be changed every 3 months
It is easy to write these exotic rules, but they are not practical. Most people have to keep more than 20 passwords to log into various sites. If every website has their own exotic rules, it would be impossible for the user to remember all these passwords.
We need to exercise common sense. Many of these websites do not contain critical information. I consider that telephone number, address and e-mail to be public information and are not sensitive. So what, if someone knows my e-mail? It is available in my blog anyway. So what, if they know my mobile phone and call me? They do anyway, and I know how to deal with unwanted callers.
We only need secure passwords for bank accounts involving transfer of money or for e-mail accounts that are accessed daily. In most other cases, there is no need to secure passwords. There are millions of accounts, and there is no purpose in spending the time to hack them, unless a specific person is being targeted. If this is the case, the targeted person can take legal action against the hacker for theft or invasion of privacy.
Tan Kin Lian
- at least 8 characters long
- does not contain all or part of one's name
- mix of upper and lower case characters
- does not have repeated numbers or characters side by side
- password must be changed every 3 months
It is easy to write these exotic rules, but they are not practical. Most people have to keep more than 20 passwords to log into various sites. If every website has their own exotic rules, it would be impossible for the user to remember all these passwords.
We need to exercise common sense. Many of these websites do not contain critical information. I consider that telephone number, address and e-mail to be public information and are not sensitive. So what, if someone knows my e-mail? It is available in my blog anyway. So what, if they know my mobile phone and call me? They do anyway, and I know how to deal with unwanted callers.
We only need secure passwords for bank accounts involving transfer of money or for e-mail accounts that are accessed daily. In most other cases, there is no need to secure passwords. There are millions of accounts, and there is no purpose in spending the time to hack them, unless a specific person is being targeted. If this is the case, the targeted person can take legal action against the hacker for theft or invasion of privacy.
Tan Kin Lian
Singapore's declining birth rate
Singapore's birth rate continued to decline in 2009. The Prime Minister blamed it on the economic crisis. But, the birth rate has been falling in good years as well. The various incentives introduced by the Government during the past two decades failed to work.
My "common sense" observations and talking to ordinary people tell me that families are having less children due to the following reasons:
- High cost of living
- Insecurity of jobs
- High cost and burden of educating the child
- No fun for children to take the pressure of childhood
The complicated incentives, to give different benefits to different child according to birth order, year of birth, status of mothers and many other factors did not help.
We should not blame this situation on the modern lifestyle. While the birth rate is falling in other developed countries as well, the situation in Singapore is among the worst in the world. We are seeing the outcome of our social and economic policies.
To improve the birth rate, I would prefer to implement the following measures:
- Have the cost of raising two children in each family to be borne by the state, and not be a financial burden for the family
- Change the education system to avoid the competition to be top, but to educate our young to be literate, numerate, have social skills and character and to play.
Tan Kin Lian
My "common sense" observations and talking to ordinary people tell me that families are having less children due to the following reasons:
- High cost of living
- Insecurity of jobs
- High cost and burden of educating the child
- No fun for children to take the pressure of childhood
The complicated incentives, to give different benefits to different child according to birth order, year of birth, status of mothers and many other factors did not help.
We should not blame this situation on the modern lifestyle. While the birth rate is falling in other developed countries as well, the situation in Singapore is among the worst in the world. We are seeing the outcome of our social and economic policies.
To improve the birth rate, I would prefer to implement the following measures:
- Have the cost of raising two children in each family to be borne by the state, and not be a financial burden for the family
- Change the education system to avoid the competition to be top, but to educate our young to be literate, numerate, have social skills and character and to play.
Tan Kin Lian
Facebook Fan page for Tan Kin Lian & Associates
My staff has created this Facebook Fan page to promote my blog and the services offered by Tan Kin Lian & Associates. You are invited to join his Fan page. Please help to get other people you know to join as well.
The Singapore Recalcitrant
This blog has many well written articles about the social and political situation in Singapore.
Why I joined the Opposition - Gerald Giam
My friends in the PAP tell me that it is more effective to change Singapore from within the PAP than from outside.
I believe that changes to the finer details of policies are possible from within, but fundamental changes to the way the country is governed can only come if the top echelon of leaders in the party either radically change their mind, or are replaced.
Neither is about to happen anytime soon.
Quality of Life Index
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