tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post115278090003089373..comments2024-03-14T22:55:24.426+08:00Comments on Mr Wang Bakes Good Karma: Singaporeans, Retirement & Old AgeGilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comBlogger15125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1157552879846253952006-09-06T22:27:00.000+08:002006-09-06T22:27:00.000+08:00Hi! Mr Wang, Yur website is great. I see all the...Hi! Mr Wang, Yur website is great. I see all these arguements/comments as useful to bring about awareness that one just have to plan for their retirement, not just financially, but also in other ways like being engaged socially. It saddens me of course to see old folks like me, cleaning tables, toilet cleaners to erk out a living. But won't that be better than to brood whilst idling away at Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1154616784434590552006-08-03T22:53:00.000+08:002006-08-03T22:53:00.000+08:00Oops I totally forgot I left a comment here. Sorry...Oops I totally forgot I left a comment here. Sorry for the late response. Just thought I'd point out that there are the people who amuse themselves in old age because they can't sit still, and there are those who have to keep working to survive. And in Singapore, the more visible ones are the latter. And for those with no cpf, and since we have no social security, they will just add to this paddychickenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18342080535815734321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152975975739162032006-07-15T23:06:00.000+08:002006-07-15T23:06:00.000+08:00I absolutely concur with anon who said this is the...I absolutely concur with anon who said this is the musing of a bourgeoisie class. <BR/>Many folks from other parts of the world are facing huge social problems due to globalisation. We are just a thin hair luckier but beginning to see the side effects manifesting. <BR/>As evidence now, there is no job security and there won't be in the future to come as long as we allow the businessmen to lead Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152863034544655832006-07-14T15:43:00.000+08:002006-07-14T15:43:00.000+08:00Errr, I wasn't talking about costs of living actua...Errr, I wasn't talking about costs of living actually. Sorry you're angry.Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152858306657455622006-07-14T14:25:00.000+08:002006-07-14T14:25:00.000+08:00Sorry to say your take on this come across as the ...Sorry to say your take on this come across as the musings of a member of the bourgeoisie. Many older Singaporeans have to work in their golden years. Many lost jobs in their middle age and suffered an income plunge, their incomes becoming even lower as they aged. $1,000 per month in future will not cover rent, conservancy, food, utilities, transport and medical fees. Yet how many ordinary people Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152842229163807132006-07-14T09:57:00.000+08:002006-07-14T09:57:00.000+08:00I think being occupied after retirement is differe...I think being occupied after retirement is different from being gainfully employed.<BR/><BR/>Doing part-time hobby stuff is fine for kopi money and battling boredom.<BR/><BR/>However, in Singapore, very few have such luxury. <BR/><BR/>Most need to be gainfully employed, that is, able to pay off mortgages and bills.<BR/><BR/>I think that's the tragedy.<BR/><BR/>How one wants to while away the Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152841958858888772006-07-14T09:52:00.000+08:002006-07-14T09:52:00.000+08:00I know there is this problem. That is why I wrote ...I know there is this problem. That is why I wrote that the Singapore job market needs to evolve such that employers become much more flexible in how they employ people.<BR/><BR/>There will however be a difference between Singapore's senior citizens of today and Singapore's senior citizens of the future. <BR/><BR/>The average 70-year-old in Singapore today is probably very poorly educated (don't Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152840925219055552006-07-14T09:35:00.000+08:002006-07-14T09:35:00.000+08:00"if I were 68 and healthy, I wouldn't mind teachin..."if I were 68 and healthy, I wouldn't mind teaching law on a part-time basis..."<BR/>Reality check: send out a fake resume, using present qualifications and work experience, and change only your date of birth. Nothing drastic, say you just collected your CPF. See how many Singaporean companies will grant you an interview, even for a part-time job.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152840467105634252006-07-14T09:27:00.000+08:002006-07-14T09:27:00.000+08:00The IPS is just a bunch of bullshit artistes. Just...The IPS is just a bunch of bullshit artistes. Just read this:<BR/>quote: Dr Sarah Harper, director of the United Kingdom's Oxford Institute of Ageing, which conducted the survey, said: "The message that is coming out of Singaporean people and the Singaporean employer is that we value older workers and we want to work longer." unquote<BR/>Oh yeah? Lots of Singaporeans NEED to work longer because Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152840109581889942006-07-14T09:21:00.000+08:002006-07-14T09:21:00.000+08:00Paddychicken, are there really no jobs which you w...Paddychicken, are there really no jobs which you would be interested in doing, if you were a healthy senior citizen today?<BR/><BR/>Think of it this way - so many kinds of hobbies & pastimes (that people do for free) could possibly be turned into at least some kind of part-time job or alternative source of income (assuming you are good enough at it, and regardless of whether you're young or old).Gilbert Koh aka Mr Wanghttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01027678080233274309noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152814694550605492006-07-14T02:18:00.000+08:002006-07-14T02:18:00.000+08:00Well it really depends on what kind of work. The i...Well it really depends on what kind of work. The issue of age is quite conflicting at times. On one hand, you have discrimination. On the other, you have gerontocracy (hey Mr. LKY, ever think about <I>retiring</I> and becoming a private citizen?).<BR/><BR/>I've met a pretty old French-speaking Malay taxi driver who drove taxis because he was tired stayign at home. <BR/><BR/>Serving MCDs or le radical galoisienhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14684821442296479803noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152808461582420722006-07-14T00:34:00.000+08:002006-07-14T00:34:00.000+08:00And that's because they will slowly but surely com...<I>And that's because they will slowly but surely come to understand that they are living longer and longer.</I><BR/><BR/>Sometimes I wonder: if we're going to have to work our socks off in our greying years just to put bread on the table, how long can we live (or should I say, how much can the body take) even with the best medical care in the world? <BR/><BR/>The upper-crust might get to live simplesandrahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09835110235511998612noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152807455668653292006-07-14T00:17:00.000+08:002006-07-14T00:17:00.000+08:00Sometimes we seem to trumpet the fact that we are ...Sometimes we seem to trumpet the fact that we are able to find employment for our elderly. That they can extend their usefulness to society.<BR/><BR/>Heck, when I'm old I wouldn't want to be working! And certainly not cleaning tables or serving McD's.paddychickenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/18342080535815734321noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152804219506076982006-07-13T23:23:00.000+08:002006-07-13T23:23:00.000+08:00I was astonished at the Singaporeans' attitudes wh...I was astonished at the Singaporeans' attitudes when a friend and mentor and fellow US expat retired recently. They seemed to think that this meant his life was over and he would just go somewhere and die now. A sad statement about how people here just don't know how to enjoy life!venithahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09204791424822324522noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-12908820.post-1152787932623678562006-07-13T18:52:00.000+08:002006-07-13T18:52:00.000+08:00I had the pleasure of meeting with Teresa on a num...I had the pleasure of meeting with Teresa on a number of occasions, a few years ago and came away impressed. I thought to myself, even if I'm half of what she is at that age, I'd be happy. She is truly inspirational. She is rich, not in wealth, but in love and kindness and she knows by taking care of herself, she can help take care of others (much, much younger than she is!)DramaMamahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04955481240031781609noreply@blogger.com