8 ms·

Lets not speak of the fact the "West" had the Berlin conference in 1884-85 to divvy up Africa between themselves. And committed lots of atrocities against the n

• seivan 11y ago
  Wasn't Singapore also a a colony? How come it succeeded? Genuine question.
  • seunosewa 11y ago
    A homogenous population. A lot of the violence and corruption in Africa (and the middle East) is a result of conflict between large tribes that hate each other and yet were placed in the same country by colonialists. This was done deliberately in many cases, to keep the colonies weak and easy to control, but continues to cause problems even after decades of "independence". I believe Singapore was spared of this due to their unique geography.
    • theworstshill 11y ago
      Singapore - a homogenous population? Is this a joke, or are you outright lying to cover for your other arguments.
      • newyankee 11y ago
        To say honestly whenever people compare nation states like Singapore , Denmark or even provinces like Hong Kong to large swathes like Africa or countries like India and compare their development it seems cringe worthy. As long as National security is not the biggest concern , a homogeneous population or at least a shared of common values in the country controlled by a single party with a goal for the greater good can achieve economic development unlike anything else. It also helps being an outlier in the given region and attracting industries that other neighboring countries can't. Except for Chinese provinces (which is a magic in itself due to the ruthlessness of a single party system) no other developing areas of the world have developed faster. Most of them share similar problems which have although reduced a lot over the past couple of decades. Even these places want a better future for themselves, the spread of information has made many individuals in all these areas aware of the world around them and they aspire for a better standard of living.
      • seunosewa 11y ago
        I fucked up. Apologies.
    • jackcosgrove 11y ago
      Singapore has a famously heterogeneous population. Historically, it has had a population of ethnic Chinese, ethnic Malays, ethnic Indians, and ethnic Europeans. Furthermore, there have been tensions between the various ethnic communities since Chinese, Indians, and Europeans began displacing the native Malays. There were terrible race riots in the 60s in Singapore. Singapore is blessed by geography, but it is not blessed by ethnic homogeneity.
      • seunosewa 11y ago
        You're right. Apologies for the misinformation.
  • pliny 11y ago
    Singapore was the focus of intensive capital expenditure by the British Empire prior to independence, and managed to maintain a stable market economy after independence which made it an attractive target for even more foreign investment.
  • sremani 11y ago
    Its a City State, the dynamics of a Nation State and City State are different. Singapore is smaller than Houston both in size and population. Singapore exploited the local inefficiencies, they were the capitalist oasis in a region of Leftist/autocratic regimes esp. during their growth period. There are many factors including leadership, but their adherence to open trade gave them a leg up in the region.
• gtpasqual 11y ago
  That was an example of a largely uneducated population. Today, it would never happen.
  • notahacker 11y ago
    I think the point is that Leopold of Belgium, who ordered the atrocities, and the civil service that condoned or encouraged it was highly educated. The world's pioneer in universal education voted for Nazis as the largest party in the Reichstag and implemented the Holocaust. One of the most despicable people behind atrocities carried out by that regime held multiple doctorates. Many peasant societies have been relatively peaceful. Sure, I don't think the present European powers would take quite the same approach to Belgium, but that has more to do with the nature of politics rather than the availability of education.
  • selimthegrim 11y ago
    Were the Serbs in Bosnia (ex-communist Yugoslavia) an uneducated population when Biljana Plavsic would spew theories about defective Muslim genes? Were the Germans in 1939 an uneducated population?
    • theworstshill 11y ago
      Well Selim, the Serbs are wise people who fought against invading muslims for more than 500 years. If anything, the "west" needed to learn from them instead of bombing them to oblivion. Modern muslim population of the Balkans are essentially invaders, you can't put it any other way. Their introduction to Eastern Europe retarded the region for centuries. The real Albanians for example were evacuated by the Pope to Sicily when the Ottomans began stirring up trouble. As for German exceptionalism in 1939 - this is what economic depression and a charismatic leader can do to a people. The difference between the Germans and say descenats of the Ottomans is that the former are still paying reparations to this day though while the later are busy burning churches in Kosovo. Go ahead, try to debate me muslim-lovers and Islam apologists. Millions of Christians live in the Middle East as 2nd rate citizens - dhimmis with no practically no rights. Where are the Assyrians of Iraq? You know the answer. This is whats attempting to spread to Europe and the rest of the world.