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Singapore has been under one guy for decades. The problem with authoritarianism is transfer of power. You can get an enlightened ruler once in a while (the ex

Singapore has been under one guy for decades. The problem with authoritarianism is transfer of power. You can get an enlightened ruler once in a while (the expected value of competence is still a lot lower than in a democracy). But long run it devolves like other despotic countries

arcticbull 6y ago
Kinda, Lee Kuan Yew was prime minister from 1959 to 1990 (and died in 2015, RIP). Goh Chok Tong took over in from 1990 to 2004, and Lee Hsien Loong has been in power since. It's been 30 years since Lee Kwan Yew left office.
- fookyong 6y ago
  Lee Kuan Yew stayed on as a senior minister in Goh Chok Tong's cabinet, and Lee Hsien Loong is Lee Kuan Yew's son (as I'm sure you know). So although Lee Kuan Yew left office 30 years ago, his influence has been present ever since.
- jessaustin 6y ago
  Is Lee fils really so different from Lee père? I mean, he's probably a better mathematician, but has he done anything one couldn't imagine his father having done? There was a TV interview in mid-00s in which the airhead interviewing LHL was really curious about how mad he must have been that Goh had led Singapore for a few years before he took over, and he grew more and more embarrassed as he assured her repeatedly that no, it hadn't been any sort of insult. Hilarious.
  - ikerdanzel 6y ago
    You have to looks things in perspective. He did way better in almost every metrics as compare to neighboring countries. Show me which EU countries did better in Covid. I would like to see your benchmark.
    - jimhi 6y ago
      "Neighboring countries" is not the EU. You also can't compare island countries with smaller populations to large land locked ones. Taiwan and New Zealand are probably the best comparisons
    - lazylizard 6y ago
      vietnam n thailand did way better...
    - jessaustin 6y ago
      Taiwan, Vietnam, and Thailand are neighboring, and they've had fewer deaths per capita. (Taiwan has had seven deaths on a 24M population!) [0] But that isn't the point I made. Do you think Singapore under LKY would have performed significantly differently in its response to such a health crisis? I don't. [0] https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
  - ValentineC 6y ago
    > Is Lee fils really so different from Lee père? I mean, he's probably a better mathematician, but has he done anything one couldn't imagine his father having done? Lee Hsien Loong has been trying to soften his image since he took office. Two examples: the press ceasing use of military ranks for all politicians (I remember him being addressed as Brigadier-General (Ret.) before), and his wearing of soft pink business shirts whenever he has to make an address.

arcticbull 6y ago

Kinda, Lee Kuan Yew was prime minister from 1959 to 1990 (and died in 2015, RIP). Goh Chok Tong took over in from 1990 to 2004, and Lee Hsien Loong has been in power since. It's been 30 years since Lee Kwan Yew left office.

fookyong 6y ago
Lee Kuan Yew stayed on as a senior minister in Goh Chok Tong's cabinet, and Lee Hsien Loong is Lee Kuan Yew's son (as I'm sure you know). So although Lee Kuan Yew left office 30 years ago, his influence has been present ever since.
jessaustin 6y ago
Is Lee fils really so different from Lee père? I mean, he's probably a better mathematician, but has he done anything one couldn't imagine his father having done? There was a TV interview in mid-00s in which the airhead interviewing LHL was really curious about how mad he must have been that Goh had led Singapore for a few years before he took over, and he grew more and more embarrassed as he assured her repeatedly that no, it hadn't been any sort of insult. Hilarious.
- ikerdanzel 6y ago
  You have to looks things in perspective. He did way better in almost every metrics as compare to neighboring countries. Show me which EU countries did better in Covid. I would like to see your benchmark.
  - jimhi 6y ago
    "Neighboring countries" is not the EU. You also can't compare island countries with smaller populations to large land locked ones. Taiwan and New Zealand are probably the best comparisons
  - lazylizard 6y ago
    vietnam n thailand did way better...
  - jessaustin 6y ago
    Taiwan, Vietnam, and Thailand are neighboring, and they've had fewer deaths per capita. (Taiwan has had seven deaths on a 24M population!) [0] But that isn't the point I made. Do you think Singapore under LKY would have performed significantly differently in its response to such a health crisis? I don't. [0] https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/ https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
- ValentineC 6y ago
  > Is Lee fils really so different from Lee père? I mean, he's probably a better mathematician, but has he done anything one couldn't imagine his father having done? Lee Hsien Loong has been trying to soften his image since he took office. Two examples: the press ceasing use of military ranks for all politicians (I remember him being addressed as Brigadier-General (Ret.) before), and his wearing of soft pink business shirts whenever he has to make an address.