12/07/2014

Return Our CPF – MediShield Life

About 1,000 people showed up for Return Our CPF Medishield Life Hong Lim Park rally

More than a month after the Return Our CPF rally on June 7 to protest the increase in the CPF Minimum Sum, some 1,000 people took to Hong Lim Park again on July 12.

This time it is to “demand transparency and accountability from the government on where our CPF monies are going” and why all the CPF talk is sheer humbug. And some other points related to these.


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Hundreds attend protest against CPF and Medishield Life policies
The Return Our CPF (MediShield Life edition) rally held at the Speaker's Corner in Hong Lim Park on July 12, 2014. -- ST PHOTO: NEO XIAOBIN

Hundreds of people gathered at a rally to protest Central Provident Fund(CPF) and MediShield Life policies at Hong Lim Park on Saturday afternoon.

There were eight speakers in all: former presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian, social activist Vincent Wijeysingha bloggers Leong Sze Hian, Ariffin Sha, Han Hui Hui and Roy Ngerng, Reform Party chief Kenneth Jeyaretnam and Singapore Democratic Party treasurer Chong Wai Fung.

The three-hour event, dubbed Return Our CPF, was organised by Ms Han


 Protest against CPF, MediShield Life at Hong Lim Park

 A protest was held at Hong Lim Park on Saturday afternoon (July 12) against the Central Provident Fund (CPF) system and MediShield Life.

Eight speakers took to the stage, including blogger Roy Ngerng, activist Vincent Wijeysingha, former presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian and Reform Party chief Kenneth Jeyaretnam.

Speakers took issue with the coverage of MediShield

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Hundreds gather at Hong Lim Park for #ReturnOurCPF (Medishield Life) protest

Several hundred people gathered at Hong Lim Park on Saturday afternoon for the second “Return Our CPF” protest, a little over a month after the first event.

This time, organisers aimed to highlight “inadequate measures” in Singapore’s healthcare programme, as well as what they said were loopholes in the planned MediShield Life scheme.

Some of the speakers included former presidential candidate Tan Kin Lian, civil rights activist Vincent Wijeysingha, Reform Party secretary-general Kenneth Jeyaretnam, Singapore Democratic Party treasurer Chong Wai Fung, and bloggers Leong Sze Hian, Han Hui Hui and Roy Ngerng.


#RETURNOURCPF – MEDISHIELD LIFE PROTEST 12 JULY, HONG LIM PARK 4:00pm

In June 2014, the enhanced benefits for MediShield Life were announced.

It was stated that there will be substantial increases in benefits for MediShield Life that will cover all Singaporeans for large hospital bills.

At a time when Singapore is ranked as the most expensive place to live in the world, where Singaporeans yet continue to receive the lowest wages among the high-income countries, CPF is akin to an additional tax on our income.


When the savings got too big, people started to get clever

When the savings got too big, people started to get clever ideas, just like the foreigners queuing outside our PM and DPM Finance’s offices asking for financial help. The foreigners know that we have a lot of money to give if they know how and what to say. We have been very generous when they rubbed us the right way.

Now where am I? Oh, the people have a lot of money in their CPF accounts. There is no need to sell HDB flats so cheaply right? The people were rich and could afford to pay more for their flats. Along the way some got carried away and HDB flats were priced to suit the savings of the people. Very affordable indeed! The more the people saved, the higher the HDB prices. The people could afford to pay until nothing left in this affordability game.

This should be a good thing if the people had paid all their savings for the flats, no need to pay them interest or return to them. And even better still, if they sell their flats, they have to pay back to CPF with interest some more, lagi shiok. Then some people had smarter ideas. So much money laid idle in the CPF. Should invest them wisely and get higher returns and profit the balance. Who can disagree with this kind of logic and game plan. Hire the best brains money can buy, sure make money one, if not in the short run, sure make in the long run. Historical data showed that over 20 or 30 years, the returned could be 20 or 30%. Bao chiat one. How to lose money, or how can lose money?


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11/07/2014

Singapore’s Armenian Heritage

Armenia’s difficult physical conditions saw enterprising merchants move abroad from the 19th century, many landing in Asia, including a few in Singapore. The community here numbered merely around 100 families at its peak, but the people left a a disproportionate imprint on Singaporean culture and heritage. Here are a few of the contributions the Armenian diaspora made.

Early Armenian traders tended to conduct business in their offices located near the centre of Singapore — there’s still an Armenian Street, where the Peranakan Museum is located. Martin and Tigran Sarkies opened the legendary Raffles Hotel in 1887; more than a century later, Raffles remains an iconic Singapore landmark and drinking a Singapore Sling at the Long Bar remains on a must-do list of many a traveller.

The grand dame of Singapore hotels has hosted writers such as Rudyard Kipling and Somerset Maugham and was gazetted as a national monument in 1987.
Martin and Tigran Sarkies were Armenian brothers who became prominent hoteliers in the region

The Armenian Apostolic Church of St Gregory the Illuminator

Singapore owes its national flower’s name to horticulturist Ashkhen Hovakimian/Joaquim

The Vanda Miss Joaquim, Singapore’s national flower

The Straits Times has come a long way since its 1845 founding by an Armenian

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10/07/2014

10 ways to boost your memory

Keep your mind sharp
Memory loss is a natural part of ageing, but there are things you can do to keep your brain in tip-top condition and improve your powers of recall. From supplements to super foods, read on to discover 10 ways to improve your memory.

Deep sleep
Blueberries
Tumeric
Exercise
Heavy smokers
Bad cholesterol
Red wine
Multi-tasking
Meditation
Spinach

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09/07/2014

How to form a lifelong bond with your child

Tips to help busy working parents connect with their children

 Here’s a question many working parents ask: how do you form a strong bond with your child when your to-do list is packed with meetings, errands, and desk work from 7 am to 8 pm every weekday? The solution is simple: “Spend uninterrupted time with your children, even just for 30 minutes every day,” says Maribel Dionisio, MA, a parenting and relationship consultant at AMD Love Consultants for Families and Couples.
Here are a few tips to help you do just that:

Have daily one-on-one sessions with each child. “When you get home, rest for 20 minutes, then spend the next 30 minutes with one child,” suggests Dr. Dionisio. “Take a break for a few minutes, then move on to the next child.” The bottom line is, you’ll really have to make time for these bonding sessions.

Go on weekly solo dates with each child, as well.  Dr. Dionisio says apart from spending time daily with your kids, it’s also important for each parent to take each of the kids out on one-on-one dates every week (or every two weeks). But there’s one rule: “You have to do it on a budget...” says Dr. Dionisio. That will force you and your child to be creative, and it will teach your child financial responsibility. Will you have ice cream at an outdoor playground? Kick around a ball in the park?

Set a schedule and let everyone know about it. This one-on-one project is a family effort, so everyone has to be in on it wholeheartedly. Both parents have to figure out a schedule for the weekly dates—who takes whom out, how long they’ll be out, etc. Divide your time wisely, especially if you have many kids. Write down this schedule and put it up where everyone in your family can see. This will create a routine; help parents figure out their priorities; and show kids when their turn is with you.

With teenagers, you’ll have to be creative. “Your weekly dates won’t be good enough anymore when your kids become teenagers,” says Dr. Dionisio. When that time comes, you’ll have to be more creative because you’ll be the one chasing them to spend time with you. Is your teen going to her friend’s house? Offer to drive her over. Does your son need some supplies from the bookstore? Offer to go shopping with him. Does your daughter have rehearsals at school? Pick her up and take her out for ice cream after.

Don’t use a cookie-cutter routine for all your kids. Because each child is different, you’ll have to treat them differently, as well.

“Your eldest and your second child probably think in opposite ways,” says Dr. Dionisio. “If you put both kids together and force them to do the same things with you, normally, they’ll just end up fighting. Or you might inadvertently give more attention to the louder child. Your alone time has to be custom-fit for each child. Some kids need more alone time with you than other kids.”

Take advantage while they’re still young. Spending time with your children is important, more so while they’re still young.

“It takes three to five years to change behaviour,” says Dr. Dionisio. “The sooner parents understand this principle, the better. Their positive relationship with their kids will give parents leverage if they have relationship problems with their kids later on. They won’t have to do repair work [on their kids’ attitude] if they work on it now.” And by ‘working on it,’ that means spending quality (and quantity) time with your kids. If you connect with them this way for their first 10 years, you’ll be able to connect with them for the rest of their lives.

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08/07/2014

Making The Breast Of It


Here’s what to expect from your hardworking and ever-changing boobs during pregnancy and beyond

 With so much focus on your bump, it’s easy to neglect the two real champions of pregnancy and motherhood — your breasts. Indeed, they’ll swell up, shrink, hurt, leak, crack and go through more changes than Rihanna at one of her gigs.

 “They will undergo some dramatic ups and downs,” says GP Dr James Thompson. “From nipple changes and sensitivity to becoming engorged with milk, it’s a big physical transformation.”

Strapped into nursing bras, your once-perky pair are now glorified milk bottles. Says psychologist Rachel Foux, “Our breasts are also linked with our body image, so this can have an emotional impact, too.”

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