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> Singapore is surrounded by far more corrupt countries It's funny you say because I have my favorite counter-example from one of those surrounding countries.
by amag 9y ago
> Singapore is surrounded by far more corrupt countries
It's funny you say because I have my favorite counter-example from one of those surrounding countries. I was in Thailand when Thaksin Shinawatra with his ThaiRakThai party was first elected into power. Many people I spoke to had voted for him because "he's the richest man in Thailand, he doesn't need any more money so he cannot be corrupted!". Fast-Forward five years and he changed laws that allowed him to sell a larger share of his own company as well as evade paying taxes for the sale. He was ousted by the military for being too corrupt for Thailand!
- narrator 9y agoHe wasn't being paid by the government though. His government salary was probably trivial compared to his other sources of income.
- rtpg 9y agoSo do we need to pay the US President billions? If there was a "pay $10 billion to get a law" corruption system in the US, all the big companies would spend that money. Nothing is more valuable We don't need to reward politicians for not being terrible. Having a strong independent judiciary is good enough. Sure, in the US there's super PACs and whatnot, but when the bribery is explicit enough, politicians go to jail.
- chiefalchemist 9y ago"Sure, in the US there's super PACs and whatnot, but when the bribery is explicit enough, politicians go to jail." Most of them are not that stupid. Why risk jail when there are countless ways to be compensated and not get caught. Sure I agree with you. But that still leaves a pretty big hole in the system.
- stevew20 9y agoHere's a thought: give people the right to vote for the public execution of their immediate representatives. If you represent people faithfully you prosper, if not you get a foot shorter.
- guptaneil 9y agoInterestingly, many people (including Trump) said the same thing about Trump in the States. He's so independently wealthy, he can finance his entire campaign himself and not be controlled by anyone because he doesn't owe them anything. Turns out that couldn't be further from the truth.
- chiefalchemist 9y agoTrue or not. What we've learned is its not a positive either. Someone with no strings attached will act as such. That is, unteathered.