4 ms·

I'm a fan of Gibson, but this isn't really an accurate description of Singapore. Singapore's overwhelmingly the most functional and prosperous place in Southeas

I'm a fan of Gibson, but this isn't really an accurate description of Singapore. Singapore's overwhelmingly the most functional and prosperous place in Southeast Asia, by any metric or measure. People who love politics don't like Singapore, because Singaporean politics are boring. One group is in charge, they do a pretty good job, and everyone likes them. But outside of politics and drugs, you can do pretty much whatever you want in Singapore, you're really safe, and the culture's as vibrant as anywhere else. There's a nice mix of Chinese, Malay, Thai, Indian, American, Japanese, and other kinds of experiences to be had in music, food, clothing, and basically whatever else. Good art, technology, commerce, inventing, education. After traveling a lot around the region, I can't wrap my mind around articles like these. The second most functional country in SE Asia is Thailand, and it's way more dangerous and less functional than Singapore. Where else? Vietnam? Cambodia? Malaysia? Laos? I've been to all those places except Laos, and Singapore is nicer in pretty much every way. Don't let the article turn you off from visiting if you get a chance. It's a nice country, with friendly people, and plenty of things to do. If you went, you'd probably enjoy it.

brown9-2 16y ago
To be fair, the article is 17 years old.
- hugh3 16y ago
  Has Singapore changed much in the last seventeen years? I get the feeling that it hasn't (though my one and only visit to Singapore would have been circa 1998).
quant18 16y ago
The second most functional country in SE Asia is Thailand Malaysia is a lot more functional than Thailand on most measures (GDP per capita, number of coups per decade, corruption perception index, etc.) In the foreign press they get quite a bad rap ... not only do they hang Aussie drug smugglers like Singapore, but they also have racial discrimination laws, religious police who raid bars and hotels, ex-PMs who spout off about "the Jews", etc. And on the ground, they definitely have worse public safety, more drugs, and more cops asking for "tea money" than Singapore (fewer than Thailand, though). On the other hand there's less alcohol, bigger houses, and cheaper schools, which means a lot of expats perceive it as more family-friendly than Singapore despite the obvious drawbacks. And in reality, KL still has good nightlife despite the occasional tussle with the Islamic Affairs officers (who don't have any authority over non-Muslims anyway). The Malaysian legal system isn't great, but it's common law, and it's good enough that all the fund managers are happy to use Labuan as a tax haven and a conduit for investing ... into South Korea, who haven't been very successful in pressuring the Malaysians to take Labuan out of the double-taxation agreement. (This is for example how Newbridge Capital managed to avoid paying capital gains tax on Korea First Bank back in 1998). I can't imagine any fund manager or rich tax evader being happy to park his money in a bank in Bangkok even if their taxes were lower. On the bright side, and directly on topic for Hacker News: both Malaysia and Singapore beat the pants off of any other place in Asia (including Hong Kong) for the level of support they're giving to startups. The talent pool is better in Singapore (simply cuz so many Malaysian grads end up there and don't want to come back), but the real estate costs are a much bigger barrier. See e.g. http://www.cradle.com.my/ http://www.cradle.com.my/ http://www.technopreneurdevelopment.net.my/ http://www.technopreneurdevelopment.net.my/
JoeAltmaier 16y ago
except buy William Gibson novels etc. Anything you want? That sounds like what a contented citizen of 1984 is supposed to say.
rikthevik 16y ago
> One group is in charge, they do a pretty good job, and everyone likes them. That doesn't sound like any government I've ever heard of. I guess my concern is, what if they don't keep doing a good job? Like let's say they get corrupt and slovenly like every other long-running institution. It doesn't seem like there's any way to remove them. It reminds me of a line from an old Dave Foley sketch. "In Canada we are ruled by a small boy with supernatural powers. (menacingly) Of whom we are all very fond."

brown9-2 16y ago

To be fair, the article is 17 years old.

hugh3 16y ago
Has Singapore changed much in the last seventeen years? I get the feeling that it hasn't (though my one and only visit to Singapore would have been circa 1998).

quant18 16y ago

The second most functional country in SE Asia is Thailand Malaysia is a lot more functional than Thailand on most measures (GDP per capita, number of coups per decade, corruption perception index, etc.) In the foreign press they get quite a bad rap ... not only do they hang Aussie drug smugglers like Singapore, but they also have racial discrimination laws, religious police who raid bars and hotels, ex-PMs who spout off about "the Jews", etc. And on the ground, they definitely have worse public safety, more drugs, and more cops asking for "tea money" than Singapore (fewer than Thailand, though). On the other hand there's less alcohol, bigger houses, and cheaper schools, which means a lot of expats perceive it as more family-friendly than Singapore despite the obvious drawbacks. And in reality, KL still has good nightlife despite the occasional tussle with the Islamic Affairs officers (who don't have any authority over non-Muslims anyway). The Malaysian legal system isn't great, but it's common law, and it's good enough that all the fund managers are happy to use Labuan as a tax haven and a conduit for investing ... into South Korea, who haven't been very successful in pressuring the Malaysians to take Labuan out of the double-taxation agreement. (This is for example how Newbridge Capital managed to avoid paying capital gains tax on Korea First Bank back in 1998). I can't imagine any fund manager or rich tax evader being happy to park his money in a bank in Bangkok even if their taxes were lower. On the bright side, and directly on topic for Hacker News: both Malaysia and Singapore beat the pants off of any other place in Asia (including Hong Kong) for the level of support they're giving to startups. The talent pool is better in Singapore (simply cuz so many Malaysian grads end up there and don't want to come back), but the real estate costs are a much bigger barrier. See e.g. http://www.cradle.com.my/ http://www.cradle.com.my/ http://www.technopreneurdevelopment.net.my/ http://www.technopreneurdevelopment.net.my/

JoeAltmaier 16y ago

except buy William Gibson novels etc. Anything you want? That sounds like what a contented citizen of 1984 is supposed to say.

rikthevik 16y ago

> One group is in charge, they do a pretty good job, and everyone likes them. That doesn't sound like any government I've ever heard of. I guess my concern is, what if they don't keep doing a good job? Like let's say they get corrupt and slovenly like every other long-running institution. It doesn't seem like there's any way to remove them. It reminds me of a line from an old Dave Foley sketch. "In Canada we are ruled by a small boy with supernatural powers. (menacingly) Of whom we are all very fond."