Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead

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Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
“Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead-
ers are change agents. Which brings us to three traits that strike us as essential:

First, true change agents see a future no one else does, and that vision won’t let
them rest. They don’t lead change because it “makes sense” or because change is
“necessary.” They lead change because they believe their organization must get
change in order to survive and win.

Second, change agents have courage. Some leaders will sit around all day talk-         1
ing about the future and how the organization might adjust for it. True change
agents are willing to take bold action—and accept the consequences. They know
that leading change can be messy, with few clear-cut answers about how events
will play out. They understand that push back accompanies any change initia-
tive and that they will take the brunt of it if things go wrong, termination includ-
ed. That doesn’t stop them, either.

Finally, change agents have something about them that galvanizes teams and
turns people on.”

“What Change Agents Are Made Of”
By Jack and Suzy Welch
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
Course Description                                                               Johnson, creator of Manpacks, an online, subscription, men’s underwear company; nationally rec-
                                                                                                                  ognized creativity professor, Amy Whitaker, (Museum Legs); US Federal Attorney Richard Rose;
                                                                                                                  TACO INC Training and Development Manager Nan Quinlan; Roger Williams University Ad-
    My name is Steve Cronin. I’m the President of TWOBOLT, formerly Mercury Print & Mail, in Paw-                 missions Counselor Don Mays; former Progreso Latino General Manager and Founder of the Elisha
    tucket, Rhode Island. TWOBOLT is a direct marketing strategy and services company. We provide                 Project, George Ortiz; national Boys and Girls Club ‘Youth of the Year’ award winner Carolina
    data-based strategy and an assortment of corresponding services for more personalized, measurable,            Correra; Soren Ryherd, President of Working Planet; Kipp Bradford, Inventor and Entrepreneur
    customer engagements. From variable digital printing, mailing services, and plastic membership                and Brown University Professor; Marta Aparicio, Hope High and Georgetown University grad-
    cards to web-to-print portals, e-fulfillment, graphic design, data collection, analytics, and strate-         uate; and Rhode Island School of Design Fashion Design major Anya Valderanna and Industrial
    gic consultation, TWOBOLT is helping companies collect and use information like never before.                 Design major Tino Chow are just some of the guests who have participated in classroom activities.

    My community service for the past 11 years has been teaching a weekly class at Hope High School               Business cards are printed for each student to facilitate the development of their networking
    in Providence, Rhode Island, attempting to turn American history into an experience that introduces           skills. Several remote, after-school activities are scheduled to develop and refine the pro-
    and develops important ‘life skill’ concepts for each student’s lifetime success:                             gram’s life skills: The Rhode Island Hispanic American Chamber of Commerce Banquet, the
                                                                                                                  BIF annual Summit, an annual networking event at a Pawtucket Red Sox game in a corporate
                                                                                                                  suite at McCoy Stadium, a jobs tour at the CVS Corporate office in Woonsocket, RI, an
                                                                                                                  entrepreneurial orientation at Teespring in Providence, an interschool activity with LaSalle
                                          leadership                                                              Academy students and a college tour .

                                            change                                                                To close the widening technology gap between students from more affluent communities and
                                                                                                                  many of our Hope students, we’ve begun an experimental program awarding tablets to Life
                                            success                                                               Skills students who have exceptional attendance records, shown maximum effort in all their
                                        personal brand                                                            classes as well as meeting all the expectations of this class. This text has been produced as an
                                                                                                                  E-book on our class web site: www.hopelifeskills.com. All class activities and assignments
2                                            hope                                                                 are posted on this web site. As Hope students prepare for college or technical schools as well                3
                                                                                                                  as career and lifetime learning, they need access to the latest web based software and hardware.
                                                                                                                  Technology enables them to develop research and analytic skills critical to success in college
    Related skills, fundamental to these concepts, are also introduced: networking, critical thinking,            and technical schools and, eventually, to compete for jobs in our highly competitive global mar-
    risk management, interpersonal, creativity, collaboration, and empathy.                                       ketplace. Access to technology also prepares them for current job opportunities provided by
                                                                                                                  some of our Life Skills class community partners like CVS, AAA, and Partridge, Snow, & Hahn.
    Eight personalized textbooks are printed ‘on demand’ for each student; each text focuses on one of
    the aforementioned concepts within a specific historical period. Several noteworthy Americans of              Finally, we are sending students from our life skills program to the National Youth Leadership Fo-
    each period are profiled to characterize each concept. The text includes activities to enhance concept        rum (www.nylf.org) in Washington, DC each year. High school students from across the coun-
    appreciation and skill development.                                                                           try attend this week long conference. We also coordinate a visit to a Washington area university
                                                                                                                  for our student(s) prior to the start of the Forum. Our ‘Life Skills’ program pays for all student
    You’ll notice many rectangular boxes, called QR codes (http://bit.ly/i4cZhy), throughout                      costs to the Forum: air fare, hotel, and program tuition. Marta Aparicio, class of 2010 at Hope,
    this text. QR codes are barcodes providing a different source for the text information.                       was our first student to apply and be accepted for the 2009 conference. Marta visited George-
    Most of the QR codes in this book link to a video. The video access is purposely offered                      town University prior to the Leadership Conference. Coincidently, Marta ultimately received a
    as an alternative for any student who more readily processes video information than                           full scholarship from Georgetown and enrolled in the Fall of 2010. 4 Hope Students attended last
    text. The video also provides enhancement or enrichment opportunities. For in-                                year’s Forum. These students also visited a University prior to the start of the Forum. Exciting stuff!
    stance, what better way to appreciate the brand of modern Singapore than listening
                                                                                     Get the free mobile app at
    to an interview of Lee Kuan Yew, Singapore’s ‘Founding Father’ (page 46 QR code)! Another benefit             This year’s Hope High Life Skill’s class will begin again in the Fall and continue to the end of the school
                                                                                     http:/ / gettag.mobi         year in June. Thank you for your interest.
    of QR codes is for tracking and soliciting feedback. One of the primary objectives of this program is a
    two-way engagement between student and teacher, constantly collecting and measuring real data, to
                                                                                                                  All questions, comments, suggestions, and/or concerns are always welcomed and can be sent to my
    refine the program so that the aforementioned ‘life skills’ do in fact have real, long term student value.
                                                                                                                  email address - (scronin@twobolt.com) .
    A diverse group of local community leaders exemplifying each concept participate in the classroom
    experience to share their life lessons for a deeper appreciation of the life skills. Entrepreneur Ken                                                                     Stephen Cronin
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
GLOSSARY OF KEY TERMS:                                         The goal of this class, Chad, is to help you be successful, today and in your future.

                                                                            You’ll decide what makes you feel ‘successful’. This class has been created to give you
                                                                                                specific skills to help you reach your goals.

                                                                          There are certain skills that have been proven to help all people become a ‘success’. The skills we’ll
                                                                          focus on in this class are called ‘Life Skills’. These skills include:

                                                                                                                    •     networking
                                                                                                                    •     personal brand development
                                                                                                                    •     collaboration
             INTERPRETATION, OPINION                                                                                •
                                                                                                                    •
                                                                                                                          empathy
                                                                                                                          presentation: written, oral and behavioral
        “This text is not fact, rather the view of one author;                                                      •     risk management
        consequently, it should not be automatically accepted as                                                    •     creativity
        ‘truth’. Two time Pulitzer Prize winning historian and author,                                              •     leadership
        Barbara Tuchman, stated ‘there is no such thing as a neutral                                                •     analysis; observation; listening;
        or purely objective historian….without an opinion, a historian                                              •     basic computer skills
        would simply be a ticking clock..…’
        Your mission should be to determine the ‘truth’. Your challenge
                                                                          These skills will be increasing in value in the 21st century. Jobs requiring these skills will grow 2
        will be to explain why anyone should believe you.”
4                                                                         ½ times faster than ‘other’ jobs! In fact, The Employment Policy Foundation claims there won’t                             5
                                                                          be enough people with these critical skills to fill all the new jobs of the 21st century. While a
                                                                          job doesn’t necessarily determine whether you’re ‘successful’, a job, career, or profession will
                                                                          most likely determine how you’ll support yourself and the lifestyle you’ll live. You will be helped
                                                                          understanding the connection between your ‘personal brand’ and how your brand creates op-
                                                                          portunities for your success. Understanding ‘change’ and how to manage it will be important
                                                                          too. Technology has and will continue to be the principal driver of ‘change’ in America and the
                                                                          rest of the world; but, so will immigration, life expectancy, global competition, lifetime learning,
                  BELIEVABILITY                                           ‘leadership’ and ‘hope’. The world is changing; getting you ready for the changes is our focus.

    “It’s not a given, we acquiesce too quickly. Be respectfully                   This class concentrates on specific skills and behaviors
    skeptical. Do your homework; check the record and the resume.                         to help you be the success you hope to be.
    Ask the question – ‘should I trust this person as a credible          My first question to you is:
    source for the truth?’ Make it a prerequisite before embracing
    the claims of anyone who professes to have the ‘answers’.”                  • are you ready to work on these skills and behaviors,
                                                                          right now?
                                                                          I understand if some of you are not ready to commit to the work of this class; you prob-
                                                                          ably have other pressing issues. If you can’t commit, please find another class. For those
                                                                          choosing to stay, I expect you to work as hard I do by coming to school, ON TIME, attend-
                                                                          ing class, completing assignments, and showing up to some of our events. I am commit-
                                                                          ted to your growth and success. I expect the same commitment from you. Thank You.
                                                                                       (1)
                                                                                             “The 2020 Workplace: How Innovative Companies, Attract, Develop, and Keep Tomorrow’s Employees Today”
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
“.....If you don’t change, you become extinct...”                              “Lead, follow or get out of the way!”
                                                                       Thomas Paine. American Revolutionary.
6   Lee Kuan Yew                                                                                                                          7
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
“The world is now tilting more to the right, that is, east rather than
                                                             west. China has returned to become the planet’s centrifugal force with
                                                                                its emerging neighbors in tow.
                            “to improve is to change;                            The west, on the other hand,
8                                                                                                                                      9
                        to be perfect is to change often.”          namely the United States and the European countries of
                                                                     England, France, Germany and other Euro members,
                                                                                wrestle with the consequences.
    Winston Churchill
                                                                   The impact of this global restructuring is now unfolding.”
                                                             Moi
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
Preface                                      some people who want to be behind
                                                  the wheel, responsible for which way
                                                                                                                                   and who’ll they’ll ultimately become.                    ‘success’ can be fleeting,
                                                                                                                                                                                                  all but a brief
                                                  the proverbial bus is going.                                                     Most of us want ‘success’‘. We want to
                                                                                                                                                                                                 moment in life.
                    Change.                                                                                                        feel ‘fulfilled’, pleased about who we
                                                            They want to sit                                                       are. This
     We speak about it a lot in our ‘Life                   in the big seat,
     Skills’ class, not because it’s interest-        in front, behind the wheel.                                                        feeling of ‘success’
     ing, which it is, but because it’s a ne-                                                                                              or ‘fulfillment’
     cessity for life time success and sur-       They want a say in the destination                                                     often comes from
     vival.                                       and what they’ll experience along the                                                  the satisfaction of
                                                  way. They want a say in the life they’ll                                             what we’re doing in life.
                 “Survival?                       live, the things they do and the people
               Sounds drastic,                    they meet. Drivers want to chart the
                 Mr Cronin.                       course, decide what roads to take and
                                                  manage the ‘changes’ they’ll encoun-
     Come on; we’re talking about ‘change’        ter along the way. They want to deter-
                                                                                                                                                                                    one time high school, college and professional basketball star, Alan Iverson,
     not ‘death’. Aren’t you taking this a        mine their destiny and not leave it to                                                                                            earned millions of dollars along the way yet eventually found himself bank-
                                                                                                                                                                                    rupt at age 35. In November 2010, Kate Fagan, a 76ers beat writer for the
     little too far? “                            someone else.                                                                                                                     Philadelphia Inquirer newspaper reported that Iverson was “broke” and heav-
                                                                                                                                                                                    ily in debt. At a divorce proceeding in Atlanta in 2012, Iverson shouted to his
                                                                                                                                                                                    estranged wife, Tawanna, “I don’t even have money for a cheeseburger!” She
                                                                                                                                                                                                            handed him $61”. (Wikipedia)
10   You know, Chad, you might be                        They want to decide                                                                                                                                                                                          11
     right,........ for you. But for others, I        the experiences they’ll live
     know with great certainty, change is
     critical. Like everything else in life,

       it’s a matter of perspective,

     that is, it’s about how you live your life
     and what you want out of it.                                                                                                                                                   Edsel was an automobile planned, developed, and manufactured with great ex-
                                                                                                                                                                                    pectations by the Ford Motor Company in 1958, 1959, and 1960. The Edsel never
                                                                                                                                                                                    gained popularity with American car buyers and sold poorly. The Ford Motor
                                                                                                                                                                                    Company lost millions of dollars on the Edsel’s development, manufacturing and
                Some people                                                                                                                 Malala Yousafzai at the international
                                                                                                                                                    Girl Summit in 2014
                                                                                                                                                                                        marketing. The very word “Edsel” became a popular symbol for failure

              don’t want to be                                                                                                                                                      History is replete with momentary
                a passenger                                                                                                        Our jobs. Our relationships. Our                 success stories; a hero today, a nobody
                on life’s bus;                                                                                                     standard of living. How we live                  tomorrow; from ‘gotta have’ to ‘don’t
             they want to drive!                                                                                                   our life. Who we have become.                    want’; popularity, wealth and riches
                                                                                                                                                                                    only to be followed by unanticipated
     Some people don’t want others to de-                                                                                          We know from the lives of others we              misfortune in the form of a relation-
     cide their future, i.e. where they will                                                                                       observe or read about that                       ship breakup, a job loss or company
     go or what they’ll be in life. There are     Classically trained cellists, Luka Šulić and Stjepan Hauser, decided to change
                                                                                                                                                                                    bankruptcy, poverty even shame.
                                                  their career course to become pop and rock artists in 2011. They released
                                                  three successful rock albums and have performed before large audiences all
                                                                                   over the world.
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
Anticipating the future and taking the
                                                                                          measured risks to ensure its success or
                                                                                                                                    Where in the world                          It’s the reason why some refer to Sin-
                                                                                                                                                                                gapore as a city state. It’s found off the
                                                                                          avoid its catastrophe is what ‘change
                                                                                          agents’ do. According to Jack Welch,
                                                                                                                                      is Singapore?                             southern part of the continent of Asia
                                                                                                                                                                                separated from the country of Malay-
                                                                                          one of the 21st century’s best com-       Singapore is an island. It’s a relatively   sia by a narrow body of water called
                                                                                          pany leaders at the General Electric      small place, only 277 square miles.         the strait of Johor. Singapore finds
                                                                                          Corporation, ‘change agents’ have the     That makes it                               itself south of the countries of China,
                                                                                          curiosity and ability to ‘look around                                                 Viet Nam, India, Cambodia, Laos,
                                                                                          corners to see into the future’. Steve                                                Thailand and Myanmar (Burma) and
                                                                                          Jobs had a similar saying, borrowed                  smaller than
                                                                                          from hockey great, Wayne Gretsky. “I                New York City
                                                                                          skate to where the puck is going to be,
                                                                                          not where it is.”                         in land area. If you combine the land
                                                                                                                                    of the Rhode Island cities of Provi-
                                                                                          This text is yet another story about      dence, Cranston, Warwick, Foster/
                                                                                          ‘change’ and the agents who envision      Gloucester, Burriville and Situate,
                                                                                          it and lead others to it. More specifi-   you’d have the size of the country of
                                                                                          cally,                                    Singapore. It’s

     Steve Jobs, co-Founder of Apple, was essentially ‘fired’ from his company in
                                                                                                 this is the story of                        more like a city
12   1985. In 1996, Jobs returned to find his former company with its brand in de-
                                                                                                                                         but officially a country.                                                           13
     cline, depreciating stock value with millions of dollars in financial losses. Jobs
     began collaborating with Apple Vice President of Industrial Design, Jonathan Ive,       the country of Singapore
     to create a number of successful products, including the IPod and IPhone, restor-
     ing Apple’s brand to prominence and making Apple the most valuable company
                                       in the world.
                                                                                                        and its
                                                                                           irrepressible and passionate
                                                                                                   ‘change agent’,
         This is where the concept of ‘change
         agent’ reveals its saving value to peo-                                                   Lee Kuan Yew.
         ple, companies and the organizations
         like schools they’re a part of.

                 ‘Change agents’ are
                     visionaries.
                   They’re people
                      who look
                    to the future
                    to determine
              what they should be doing
                        in the
                       present.
Change agents have to be leaders. And yet, as you know, not all lead
The Port of Singapore is the world’s second-busiest port in terms of total shipping tonnage. It ships a fifth of the world’s shipping containers and a significant
                                                             percentage of the world’s supply of refined oil.

     north of the large island of Indonesia                                              to turn oil companies’ crude oil into
14   and the continent of Australia. It is lo-                                           gasoline, heating oil and other refined                                                                                                                             15
     cated at the crossroads of one of the                                               products. When Singapore started re-                                                 no oil, lumber, or gold,              people have a job. Most Singapor-
     busiest shipping seaways in the world.                                              fining oil, oil companies didn’t have to                                            and very little fresh water.           eans work at least 45 hours per week
     In other words,                                                                     ship their crude oil to refineries far-                                                                                    at their jobs. A person’s work ethic
                                                                                         ther away. Their shipping costs were                                              Most of Singapore’s drinking water       is held in high regard. The country
              perfect geography                                                          reduced and profits increased. The                                                has to be imported from Malaysia.        claims jobs are earned through merit,
                                                                                         Singapore government                                                              Singapore must earn money in oth-        by one’s work ethic and performance,
          for an international port.
                                                                                                                                                                           er ways to optimize the potential of     not through family, political or union
                                                                                                   used the money                                                          their geography like banks, refineries   connections or other forms of crony-
     Realizing this opportunity, Lee nego-
                                                                                                                                                                           and other businesses. The plan has       ism.
     tiated deals with major, international                                                  they were now earning from
     oil companies who were shipping                                                           refineries in Singapore                                                     worked!
     their crude oil through Singapore to                                                                                                                                                                           Corruption among politicians
                                                                                                       to build
     refineries farther away to be refined.                                                                                                                                    Singapore is one of the                         is rare
                                                                                                     a world class                                                                                                    with dire consequences
                                                                                                                                                                                  richest countries
                    Lee invested in                                                               infrastructure and                                                                                                     for anyone caught
                                                                                                                                                                                    in the world.
                  the construction of                                                             education system.
                     oil refineries                                                                                                                                        One out of six Singaporean house-        taking bribes or stealing government
                                                                                         Singapore has                                                                     holds are millionaires! The unemploy-    funds. According to a March 2015
                     in Singapore                                                                                                                                                                                   Atlantic Magazine article, “each year,
                                                                                                                                                                           ment rate is 2% which means most
                                                                                                     no natural resources;                                                                                          the World Bank produces Governance
Singapore’s                                                                popular by design” according to Singa-
                                                                                                                                                                         porean Tino Chow.
                                                                                                  population is one of the
                                                                                                      most diverse                                                       There are several public holidays dur-
                                                                                                                                                                         ing the year, many celebrating the
                                                                                                       in the world.
                                                                                                                                                                         cultures of the many different ethnic
                                                                                                                                                                         groups within the Singaporean popu-
                                                                                              It’s official population in 2014 was
                                                                                                                                                                         lation: Indian, Malay, Chinese and
                                                                                              5,469,700; 3,343,000 (61.12%) were
                                                                                                                                                                         many western groups like English,
                                                                                              citizens and while the remaining
                                                                                                                                                                         Dutch and American.
                                                                                              2,126,700 (38.88%) were permanent
                                                                                              residents (527,700) or foreign stu-
                                                                                                                                                                         Because the island of Singapore is so
                                                                                              dents, foreign workers or dependants
                                                                                                                                                                         small, most people live in high rise,
                                                                                              (1,599,000).
                                                                                                                                                                         government subsidized apartments.
                                                                                                                                                                         Yet, the government has dedicated
                                                                                              Racial and religious harmony                                               more than 10% of the available land
                                                                                                       is stressed                                                       for parks and nature reserves.
                                                                                                  by the government.
                                                                                                                                                                         Singapore has one of the best public
                                                                                              Lee encouraged Singapore’s diverse                                         school systems in the world boasting
16   Indicator metrics on government effec-                  only 8 percent                   ethnic groups to live together in the                                      some of the highest scores on inter-                             17
     tiveness, regulatory quality, rule of law,             of Singaporeans                   same neighborhoods and work co-                                            national tests. There is standardized
     and control of corruption. Singapore
                                                                 believe                      operatively. He mandated English as                                        testing at each stage of a student’s ed-
     leads the United States by a significant                                                 the official language of the country as                                    ucation.
     margin on each of these measures.                     their government
                                                                                              a way of unifying the country while
     Singapore’s widest lead over both the                     is corrupt.”
                                                                                              mandating a second language, the lan-                                                Singaporean students
     United States and comparable nations                                                     guage of a person’s ethnic group, as a
     comes in the prevention of corruption        Illegal drug use is rare as a result of                                                                                               ranked first
                                                                                              person’s second language. “English is
     and graft. Singapore scores in the top       Singapore’s mandatory death penalty
     10 for honest government while the           for many drug related offenses.
     United States ranks 20 countries lower
     on the list in the bottom third. Accord-              Singapore has
     ing to the                                           one of the lowest
                                                      crime rates in the world.
        2014 Gallup World Poll,
        85 percent of Americans                   According to a recent Atlantic Maga-
      see “widespread” corruption                 zine article, “a citizen is 24 times more
          in their government;                    likely to be murdered in the United
                  while                           States than in Singapore”.
                                                                                                    photo of the Bishan and Ang Mo Kio housing projects in Singapore. A beautiful and well kept park separates both building complexes.
in the 2011 Trends in International                                             with one of four local languages: Man-   poreans reported that they struggled to
     Mathematics and Science Study. Sin-                                             darian Chinese (65%), Malay (17%)        afford food or shelter, by far the lowest
     gapore students consistently rank in                                            and Tamil (4%).                          percentage in the world. In 2013,
     the top five in the world in mathemat-
     ics, science, and reading scores. Most                                                                                     Bloomberg Business News
     Singaporeans are                                                                Singaporeans are some of the world’s           judged Singapore
                                                                                     most healthy people. Only
                                                                                                                                       “the world’s                                              Singapore American school
                 bilingual,
                                                                                                    10%                            healthiest country”;                   Soup kitchens do exist, but foreign la-
                  English
                                                                                        of Singapore’s population                   the United States                     bourers are often first in line..... Disad-
                   being
                                                                                               is considered                          was ranked 33.                      vantaged families receive support for
        the most common language                                                                                                                                          their utilities and additional subsidy
                   (80%)                                                                           obese                      Severe poverty is rare in Singapore,        for health care. Singapore also pro-
                                                                                             compared to 36%                  yet, the                                    vides more education support for the
                                                                                           in the United States                                                           children of disadvantaged families, so
                                                                                                                                  government does not                     that a cycle of poverty does not arise.”
                                                                                     (according to the Centers for Disease        have a welfare system
                                                                                     Control and Prevention).
                                                                                                                                        similar to
                                                                                                                                                                          Chad, what do you think about Sin-
                                                                                             Life expectancy                        the United States;                    gapore?
18                                                                                                                             instead, Singapore believes                                                                                               19
                                                                                      in Singapore is 80 for males
                                                                                           and 85 for females,                         each person                        Let’s take a few moments now to find
                                                                                      the 4th highest in the world                has the responsibility                  out how Singapore became the coun-
                                                                                              compared to                     to earn and save for a lifetime             try it is today. In the process, let’s
                                                                                                                               acceptable living standard.                compare Singapore’s quality of life to
                                                                                            the United States                                                             the United States as we read the next
                                                                                                ranking of                                                                several pages.
                                                                                                                              Most people who want jobs have jobs.
                                                                                                   #36

                                                                                     (79.8 males and 82.2 females) accord-         The government does,
                                                                                     ing to The World Health Organization                 however,
                                                                                     in 2012. Singapore has the lowest in-          provide support for
                                                                                     fant mortality rates in the world. At-         affordable housing,
                                                                                     lantic Magazine, in a comparison be-          health care, education
                                                                                     tween Singapore and the United States
                                                                                     in the March 2015 edition, claimed “a
                                                                                                                                      and job training.
     Sports are popular in Singapore. There are professional basketball and soccer   child born in the United States has
     leagues. Horse racing and Formula 1 auto racing are also popular. Cricket,                                               According to a 2010 Economist maga-
     swimming, sailing, table tennis, badminton, water skiing, kayaking and scu-     three times the chance of dying in in-
                     ba diving attract considerable participation.                                                            zine story, “public housing is in good
     Wong Wei Long is a popular Singaporean born professional basketball play-       fancy as a child in Singapore.... And
     er shown in the white uniform above playing for the Singapore Slingers                                                   shape; no slums are allowed to fester.      The fountain is called the ‘Merlion’ in Merlion Park near the Singapore CBD.
     team. The 5’ 9” player earned the nickname “Singapore assassin” for his         in 2012, less than 1 percent of Singa-                                                        The Merlion is a well-known tourist symbol of Singapore.
                             long range shooting prowess.
British East India Company,             island was a poor, underdeveloped,
                                                                                                 establishing a trading post            mostly swamp filled area. There were
                                                                                                                                        approximately 1,000 people living on
                                                                                                        in Singapore.
                                                                                                                                        the island of Singapore prior to this
                                                                                                                                        treaty, mostly native Malays along
                                                                                               The British East India company was
                                                                                                                                        with a handful of Chinese. By 1860,
                                                                                               owned by rich English merchants
                                                                                                                                        the population grew to over 80,000
                                                                                               and aristocrats. The company owned
                                                                                                                                        when the English developed the is-
                                                                                               ships and had its own army to protect
                                                                                                                                        land into a critically located trading
                                                                                               its interests throughout the world.
                                                                                                                                        and shipping center. More than half
                                                                                               The
                                                                                                                                        the people were soon Chinese. Many
                                                                                                                                        immigrants came to work on the rub-
                                                                                                British East India Company              ber plantations on the island. After
                                                                                                 eventually accounted for               the 1870s, the island became a global
                                                                                                  half of the world’s trade             leader in the export of rubber.
                                                                                                        especially in
                                        Lee Kuan Yew in 1955.
                                                                                                cotton, silk, indigo dye, salt,              During World War 2,
                                                                                                 saltpetre, tea and opium.                    the Japanese army
     If there is a person in Singapore’s his-         when the Sultan leader of the Malay-                                                took control of Singapore
20   tory                                             sian state of Johor in southern Malay-   The company ultimately governed            after defeating the British            21
                                                      sia, signed an agreement with a pri-     many of England’s colonial territories                army
          similar to America’s                        vate British company, the                in Asia. Around 1770s, when the East
                                                                                               India company was loosing money,
                                                                                                                                          at the Battle of Singapore.
         George Washington,                                                                    the company leaders asked the British
             Lee Kuan Yew                                                                      government for financial help. The       The Japanese army murdered thou-
        would unquestionably be                                                                British Parliament decided to raise      sands of Singaporeans during their
              that person.                                                                     money for the East India Company         occupation of the island. The Japanese
                                                                                               by taxing all tea shipped to America     military secret police committed nu-
     When Singapore faced its darkest                                                          except tea shipped by the East India     merous atrocities against the people
     hours in the early years of its modern                                                    Company. This tax essentially made       of Singapore. The
     history in 1964, Lee Kuan Yew stepped                                                     East India tea much less expensive
     forward to save the country by rally-                                                     that other teas sold in the American       Japanese army introduced
     ing its people to follow his plan and                                                     colonies. American colonists quickly           a system of terror
     his code of conduct for personal and                                                      responded with the Boston Tea Party
     national success.                                                                         on December 16, 1773.                    to get rid of anyone thought to be
                                                                                                                                        anti-Japanese. A massacre unfolded
               Singapore’s                                                                     By 1824, the entire island of Singa-     claiming the lives of 25,000 to 50,000
        international importance                                                               pore became a British possession un-     Chinese people living in Singapore
                                                                                               der a new treaty with the Sultan. The    and Malaysia. The victims were of-
           began around 1819
                                                                   Lee Kuan Yew in 2002
ten rounded up and taken to deserted                       as well as a clerk in his grandfather’s   The Japanese were finally defeated and      Lee decided that Singapore
     spots around the island and executed.                      friend’s company—a textile importer.      Singapore liberated by the combined              must eventually
     Japanese military leaders also estab-                      At one point during the occupation,       Allied armies of England and America
                                                                                                                                                            govern itself.
     lished a network of spies around the                       Lee was asked by a Japanese soldier to    in 1945.
     island to help them identify those                         join a group of Chinese men at a sepa-
     who might undermine their control.                         rate location. A suspicious Lee, whose    Life under Japanese military rule had     England ruled Singapore until 1955
     Informers were well-paid by the Japa-                      ancestors were Chinese, knew of the       a profound impact on Lee Kuan Yew.        when they turned over control to the
     nese and had no fear of being arrested.                    animosity the Japanese occupiers had                                                Singapore people and its first leader,
                                                                                                                                                    Lim Yew Hock.
     Japanese soldiers patrolled the streets                    for Chinese so he quickly asked per-         The Japanese occupation
     forcing Singaporeans to bow to them                        mission to go to his home first to col-            of Singapore
     when they passed by. Those who failed                      lect his clothes before going with the                                              Lee Kuan Yew became a member of
                                                                                                                   changed Lee                      the ‘socialist’ People’s Action Party
     to do so would be slapped or beaten                        Japanese soldier; the Japanese soldier
     and some people would be taken away.                       agreed. Lee did not return to meet the                                              (PAP) in 1954 which had strong ties
                                                                Japanese soldier. He fled.                in a number of ways. He vowed never       to the pro-communist trade unions.
                                                                                                          to submit to a foreign influence in de-   In the national elections of 1959, Lee’s
             Lee Kuan Yew                                                                                                                           party won 43 of the 51 seats in the leg-
                                                                                                          termining Singapore’s future. He also
        worked as an interpreter                                          Lee eventually learned                                                    islative assembly. Singapore gained
                                                                                                          reflected on best practices for running
         for the Japanese army                                            he was to be murdered           a country. Not that he ever consid-       self-government in all state matters
       during their occupation of                                          with other Chinese             ered using the horrific and inhumane      except defence and foreign affairs
               Singapore                                                  by the Japanese army.           tactics of the Japanese military during   which were overseen by the British.
22                                                                                                        their occupation of Singapore, but the    Lee became the first Prime Minister        23
                                                                                                          Japanese military occupation              of Singapore taking over from Chief
                                                                                                                                                    Minister Lim Yew Hock.
                                                                                                                 made him reflect
                                                                                                                                                    Lee soon questioned whether Singa-
                                                                                                                on the use of power
                                                                                                                                                    pore could survive as an independent
                                                                                                                        and                         nation. Indonesia and other regional
                                                                                                             a criminal justice system              countries were intimidating and Sin-
                                                                                                               to ensure compliance                 gapore had little leverage to create
                                                                                                                       with a                       support and protection. He asked
                                                                                                                   country’s laws.                  ‘why would anyone want Singapore as
                                                                                                                                                    an ally’? When Malayan Prime Min-
                                                                                                          Lee emigrated to England after the        ister
                                                                                                          war to go to college. He returned to
                                                                                                          Singapore in 1949 to work as a lawyer.         Tunku Abdul Rahman
                                                                                                                                                          proposed a union of
                                                                                                          The British regained control of Singa-       former British territories
                                                                                                          pore, with American help, in 1945.                  to include
                                                                                                                                                          Malaysia, Singapore,
                               the charismatic Lee speaking at a public rally in the 1970s
and Sarawak in 1961,                 Lee felt a responsibility for his coun-   regardless of race or ethnicity. No ra-   this means a man is loyal to his father
                                               try.                                      cial or ethnic discrimination would be    and mother, faithful to his wife, brings
     Lee campaigned for the union as a way          He decided to become                 tolerated. According to an Economist      up his children well, treats his friends
     to end British colonial influence and                                               March 28th, 2015 article                  properly and he is a good, loyal citizen
                                                     an ‘agent of change’
                                                                                                                                   of his country.........”. Lee’s
           increase the value of               to save it. Lee immediately began                  “the race riots
            Singapore’s brand                  preparing Singapore for independent,         that erupted in Singapore                     “Asian values” of
                                               stand alone status in the international             in the 1960s                      family, diligence, education
     within their geographic region. In        community of nations by                        colored Lee’s thinking                 and obedience to authority
     1963, Singapore became part of the
                                                                                              for the rest of his life.”                 were perfectly suited
     new Federation of Malaysia.                           creating
                                                                                                                                   for unifying a poor, vulnerable
                                                  a new Singaporean brand                He realized he had to find some way
     Race riots soon followed. 23 people                                                                                               former European colony
                                                          built upon                     of unifying his diverse country of dif-
     were killed and hundreds injured as
     Chinese and Malays attacked each                 a code of conduct                  ferent races and religions who had
                                                                                                                                   aspiring to be independent, safe and
     other.                                              founded on                                                                successful according to Orville Schell
                                                    Confucian and British                                                          in a Wall Street Journal retrospective
        Two years later in 1963,                          principles.                                                              on Lee in March of 2015. In another
         Singapore was expelled                                                                                                    retrospective column by the New York
24                                                                                                                                 Times in March of 2115, its Editorial        25
       from the Malaysian union                He demanded men be “gentlemen” by
                                                                                                                                   Board acknowledged Singapore’s post
          by Malaysia’s leader.                showing respect to all Singaporeans
                                                                                                                                   colonial success relative to the disas-
                                                                                                                                   ters of other former European colo-
     Lee was crestfallen. He feared for                                                                                            nies like Cambodia, Nigeria, Burma
     Singapore’s future as a stand alone,                                                                                          and Libya. Any behavior perceived by
     independent country again. Lee tried                                                            Lee Kuan Yew in 1965
                                                                                                                                   Prime Minister Lee as offensive, dis-
     to work out a compromise but with-                                                                                            respectful or harmful to the Singapor-
     out success. The failure of the merger                                              previously been hostile to each other.    ean community or Singapore’s inter-
     with Malaysia saddened Lee who be-                                                  It was at this time Lee introduced the    national brand would have criminal
     lieved the union with Malaysia was                                                  Confucian philosophy to bring all Sin-    consequences. Unacceptable behav-
     critical for Singapore’s long term sur-                                             gaporeans together. “The                  ior included spitting in public, graffiti,
     vival. In a televised press conference,                                                                                       littering, not flushing public toilets af-
                                                                                                Confucianist belief                ter use, vandalism and inconsiderate
          Lee fought back tears                                                                          is                        loud music as well as major offenses
                                                                                                society works best                 like selling of illegal drugs and dishon-
                                                                                                                                   est politics. He also mandated that all
     as he announced the separation from                                                               when                        Singaporeans had to vote and enacted
     Malaysia and full independence of                                                              every man
     Singapore.                                                                                                                    aggressive laws to ensure honest and
                                                                                                    aims to be                     fair elections.
                                                                                                  a gentleman....
                                                               Lee Kwan Yew
Ending corruption in               tors and terrorists. As a result, he im-   the nation and the families who live                                       current Prime Minister of
       the Singapore government             mediately invested in the Singapore        in it. Singaporeans are proud people                                              Singapore,
                                            Armed Forces (SAF) and requested           by design.”
           became a priority.                                                                                                                                         Lee Hsein Loong,
                                            help from other countries, like Israel,
                                            for advice, training and facilities. Lee   At the same time, Lee realized Sin-                                       earns $1.7 million per year.
     Lee established an agency, the Cor-
                                                                                       gapore’s vulnerable location among
     rupt Practices Investigation Bureau                                                                                                                       To make sure Singapore’s economy
     (CPIB), to conduct arrests, searches           introduced a draft                 hostile and competing nations. He
                                                                                                                                                               not only survived but grew and com-
                                                 of all able-bodied male               believed for Singapore to be safe and
     and investigation of bank accounts                                                                                                                        peted in the evolving, internet-centric
                                                                                       successful, the smartest, most intelli-
     and income-tax returns of suspected          Singaporean citizens                                                                                         global economy, Lee Kuan Yew made
                                                                                       gent and honest citizens must serve in
     persons and their families. If found            age 18 and above                                                                                          sure Singapore had
                                                                                       the government. To ensure this goal,
     guilty of corruption, imprisonment
                                                                                       he established guidelines for
     and deportation would be potential     to serve National Service (NS) either                                                                               business friendly regulations
     consequences.                          in the Singapore Armed Forces, Sin-                  government leaders                                                          and the
                                            gapore Police Force or the Singapore                                                                                 least amount of corruption
     In 1965, Singapore joined the United                                                              to be paid
                                            Civil Defence Force. According to
     Nations and later founded the Asso-                                                              high wages                                                          in the world
                                            Singaporean friend, Tino Chow, “Na-
     ciation of Southeast Asian Nations
                                            tional Service has been a powerful tool              in order to maintain                                              to encourage companies
     (ASEAN) in 1967 with four other
                                            for the government to instill national                    an effective                                                  from all over the world
     southeast Asian countries.                                                                                                                                         to do business
                                            pride and identity. National service is                       and
26                                          an extension of the idea that everyone                                                                                       in Singapore.                   27
                                                                                                 honest government.
       Lee was always concerned             has a part to play to build and protect
           the young country                                                                                                                                   Today, Singapore boasts one of the
              of Singapore                                                                                                                                     world’s most successful economies
             was vulnerable                                                                                                                                    with more
                to threats
       from powerful neighbors                                                                                                                                    than 7,000 multinational
                                                                                                                                                                        corporations
     like Indonesia and communist agita-
                                                                                        Lee Kuan Yew (left) shaking hands with his son and present Singapore
                                                                                         Prime Minister, Lee Hsein Loong. In comparison to Prime Minister
                                                                                        Loong’s $1.7 million compensation, US President Obama’s 2014 annual
                                                                                                             compensation was $395,000.

                                                                                       In 1994, Lee proposed to link the sala-
                                                                                       ries of ministers, judges, and top civil
                                                                                       servants to the salaries of top profes-
                                                                                       sionals in private companies, arguing
                                                                                       this would help recruit and retain tal-
                                                                                       ent to serve in the public sector. The
While Lee was concerned about a           ity between rich and poor would ac-      As a result, Lee invested in Singa-
                                               strong infrastructure and skilled         tually harm Singapore’s economy and      pore’s infrastructure and the nation
                                               workforce to help Singapore create        citizens according to Lee. Rather than   and its people successfully competed
                                               jobs and grow its economy, Singapore      redistribute income from the rich to     with larger countries like America
                                               does not have a minimum wage. Lee         the poor of Singapore to lessen in-      and China in the global marketplace.
                                               believed a minimum wage would make        equality,                                When a country like
                                               it harder to attract great companies to
                                               Singapore. While there is a widening                Lee claimed                         Singapore is more
                                               gap in income between Singapore’s
                                                                                               money invested in                   competitive internationally,
                                               richest and poorest, Lee believed
                                                                                           the nation’s infrastructure               more opportunities for
                                                   equality of opportunity                      like roads, ports,                      jobs and wealth
                                                     is more important                         education system,                           are created
                                                      for Singaporeans                           high speed rail,                              for
                                                       and Singapore                           universal internet,                     all Singaporeans.
                                                             than                             water resources and
                                                                                                   clean energy                   Some American economists, like Ty-
                                                     equality of income.
                                                                                             would better serve all               ler Cowen, agree. “Focusing on in-
                                                                                                                                  equality draws us to redistribution
                                               Raising taxes on companies and                 Singapore’s people -                whereas a mobility focus is more con-
28                                             wealthy citizens to narrow the dispar-                                                                                       29
                                                                                          rich, middle class and poor.            ducive to ideas of wealth creation” for
     from the United States, Japan, and Eu-
     rope with offices in Singapore. There
     are also approximately 1,500 compa-
     nies from China and a similar number
     from India. Foreign companies are
     found in almost all sectors of Singa-
     pore’s economy. Many of the world’s
     richest people have also moved to
     Singapore because of its low income
     tax rates. Singapore is home to in-
     ternational banks and a vibrant stock
     market. The island nation has the sec-
     ond largest casino in the world. Sin-
     gapore is one of the world’s top three
     oil-refining centers, the world’s larg-
     est oil-rig maker and a major hub for
     ship repair services. Singapore is an
     education hub with many foreign stu-
     dents studying there.
tivation to perform and succeed.” The
                                                           opportunity to attend great schools
                                                           for a world class education while living
                                                           in a racially diverse, safe and healthy
                                                           society with exceptional health care,
                                                           broadband internet access, highways,
                                                           ports and high speed trains should en-
                                                           able most Singaporeans with a strong
                                                           work ethic to find good paying, fulfill-   the 2nd most expensive building in the world, the Marina Bay Sands in
                                                                                                                                   Singapore
             business people at lunch break in Singapore   ing jobs to be successful according to
     individuals and a nation. This is the                 Lee.                                                    To protect
     reason why Singapore invests in its                                                                      Singapore’s security
     world class port, airport and schools                        Singapore has near                            and hard earned
     and not replicating America’s welfare                         full employment
     system. Lee believed American style
                                                                                                               economic success,
     welfare is too expensive and forces                                                                         Lee created a
                                                           with one of the lowest unemployment
     America to borrow too much money                                                                       highly regulated society
                                                           rates in the world (2%) in 2015.
     to support it. Tax money would be
     better spent on infrastructure, schools                                                          with severe criminal penalties for ac-
                                                           Singapore does, in fact, subsidize
     and internet access. Lee claimed                                                                 tivities considered fairly harmless in
30                                                         housing, health care and education,                                                                                 A display of rattan judicial canes from the Johor Bahru Prison museum,   31
     American welfare discourages people                                                              America and western European coun-                                                                        Malaysia.
                                                           not the same level as America, but at
     from working hard and persevering                                                                tries like England, Sweden and France.
                                                           a basic level to help its citizens take                                                                            caning as a punishment for many of
     to create their own wealth opportuni-
                                                           advantage of the country’s education                                                                               these aforementioned offenses.
     ties. “Honesty, meritocracy, multi-ra-                and employment opportunities. Ac-                          Singapore
     cialism, fairness in rewards according                cording to The Economist magazine,                       criminalized                                                          Caning is
     to one’s contributions to society. This is            Lee’s “public housing policy is one of                   the failure to                                                        a form of
     why welfare and subsidies destroy mo-                 Singapore’s greatest success stories.”                flush public toilets
                                                           It not only reinforced Lee’s credo of
                                                                                                                                                                                   corporal punishment
                                                                                                                      after use,                                                          where an
                                                           universal Singaporean respect but it
                                                           “also prevented discrimination against                      littering,                                                appointed administrator
                                                           poor Malays and Indians to help them                         graffiti,                                                 uses a stiff reed or stick
                                                           avoid a life in a ghetto.”                                vandalism,                                                            to ‘hit’
                                                                                                                     jaywalking,                                                    a convicted offender
                                                                   Singapore has                                        and the                                                          across the
                                                                     the world’s                                sale of chewing gum.                                             offender’s bare or clothed
                                                                highest percentage of                                                                                                     buttocks
                                                                    millionaires.                     No penalty has arguably created more
                                                                                                                                                                                              or
                                                                                                      questioning than Singapore’s practice
                           Lee Kuan Yew
                                                                                                      of caning. Singaporean courts order                                          the palm of the hand,
one ‘hit’ every 10 or 15 seconds, in a       sentenced on March 3, 1994 to four           “Some freedoms, like freedom of the
     sequestered environment usually be-          months in jail, a fine of 3,500 Singa-       press, had to be sacrificed......
     hind the walls of a prison. The size         pore dollars, and
     and flexibility of the cane as well as the                                                      A liberal democracy
     number of the strokes vary from a cou-                                                              like America
     ple of light strokes with a small cane            six strokes of the cane                         would not work
     across the seat of a schoolboy’s trou-          for graffiti and vandalism.
     sers or palm to 24 very hard, wounding                                                            in Singapore.....
     cuts on the bare buttocks with a large,                                                        Freedom of the press,                                      Port of Singapore

     heavy, soaked rattan. Singaporean                                                              freedom of expression                             Economic success
     law allows caning to be ordered with                                                            must be subordinate                              and social order
     a prison sentence for over 35 offences,                                                            to the needs of
     including hostage-taking, kidnapping,                                                                                                               fully justify
                                                                                                         the integrity                              whatever state controls
     robbery, gang robbery, murder, drug
     abuse, vandalism, rioting and unlaw-                                                                of Singapore”                                 were necessary.”
     ful possession of weapons. Caning                                                                    Lee stated.
     is also a mandatory punishment for                      Singapore police mortorcyclists
                                                                                                                                                Journalists and Singaporean citizens
     rape, drug trafficking, illegal money-                                                                                                     critical or opposed to Lee’s govern-
     lending, and for visiting foreigners                                                                                                       ment policies were often imprisoned,
                                                  Lee was seemingly always concerned
     who overstay their visa by more than                                                                                                       detained or sued into bankruptcy.
32                                                about racial tensions in his ethnically                                                                                                33
     90 days (a measure designed to deter                                                                                                       The government also censored music,
                                                  diverse country. Even as many in the
     illegal immigrant workers). According                                                                                                      films and other art considered ‘unde-
                                                  world perceived life in Singapore as
     to a Wikipedia reference, USA Today                                                                                                        sirable’.
                                                  peaceful, successful and harmoni-
     reported that caning often involved
                                                  ous, Lee’s government behaved like
     “bits of flesh flying with each stroke”                                                                                                    Besides rigid controls over the press,
                                                  the country was always on the brink
     during caning for crimes like rape and                                                           Lee Kuan Yew and President Barack Obama
                                                                                                                                                Lee took steps to control Singapore’s
                                                  of rebellion. His goal was always to
     robbery. In 2007, there were 6,404                                                                                                         population within the limited space of
                                                  “transform Singapore from a cesspool
     canings in Singapore. Since 2007, the                                                     As Wall Street Journal, long time                the island’s 277 square miles. He cre-
                                                  of squalor and degradation to a mod-
     number of caning sentences has de-                                                        Singapore observer, Orville Schell,              ated legislation so that
                                                  ern, industrialized country” accord-
     clined to just 2,500. Some people by                                                      wrote in 2015, Lee felt some individ-
                                                  ing to a BBC report after his death in
     law can not be canned; men over 50                                                        ual rights had to be sacrificed for the
                                                  2015. “To do this, he maintained tight                                                             parents were charged
     and all women.                                                                            good of the country; “the
                                                  political control over every aspect of                                                                 higher taxes
                                                  the country making it one of the most                                                                for having more
         An infamous caning case                  regulated countries in the world. ...”                 curtailment
         involved American born,                                                                        of one freedom                                       than
               Michael Fay.                       As a result, certain liberties enjoyed                  sometimes                                       2 children.
                                                  in western countries like the United                   best assures
     Fay pleaded guilty to vandalizing            States, France, England, and Canada                                                           Lee later reversed these taxes when
                                                                                                       the advancement                          Singapore’s population became dan-
     cars and stealing road signs. Fay was        were not extended to Singaporeans.
                                                                                                          of others.....                        gerously below population replace-
ment levels threatening Singapore’s         created. He admittedly had his crit-      “We were creating a country out of a                    And, in a 2010 Economist Magazine
     long term prosperity that Lee worked        ics as well as admirers. While some in    collection of diverse immigrants from                   article, several Singaporeans also
     so hard to create and preserve.             the western media have criticized his     China, India, Malaysia, Indonesia and                   weighed in on Lee’s legacy:
                                                 apparent dictator style of government     several other parts of Asia” according
                  Lee also                       and ‘inhuman’ penal system, others        to Lee. When I die, “close the coffin,
           established measures                  are praiseworthy. Through the praise      then decide” how I did; in other words,                            “Singapore definitely
                 to protect
                                                 and criticism, Singapore remains                                                                                 does not have
                                                 steadfast and an economic power in           history will determine my                                         a perfect system.
                Singapore’s                      today’s global economy quite differ-                  legacy.
               environment.                      ent from the third world poverty and
                                                 vulnerability that was Singapore in the   Lee had said on another occasion as                                    But I’m proud of
                                                 1960s.                                    reported by Aljazeera America,                                       the achievements of
                                                                                                                                                                    my country.
                                                  “I did some sharp things and                “We would not have made
                                                            hard things                            economic progress                               Like it or not, it was the authorita-
                                                       to get things right....               if we had not intervened on                           tive ways of our leaders that brought
                                                                                               very personal matters —                             us to where we are today. Poverty and
                                                    I’m not saying everything                                                                      crime DO still exist in our country. But
                                                                                                 who your neighbor is,
                  Singapore Botanic Gardens

                                                                                                                                                   I dare say the government has done an
                                                         I did was right.                             how you live,
34   In an effort to alleviate traffic conges-                                                                                                     awesome job in keeping them low. We        35
     tion on Singapore streets and, in the                                                        the noise you make,                              already have a working system; we do
                                                       (Singapore’s future)                           how you spit                                 not need to follow a failing Western
     process, raise tax revenues, Singa-
     pore’s government permits only a lim-                 was at stake;                                   or                                      (like America and Europe) - Socialist
     ited number of car licenses and charg-             I wanted this place                     what language you use.                             model. Welfare is not always about
     es motorists as much as 1.5 times the             to succeed” Lee said.                                                                       providing money. Welfare is also about
     value of the car just to get the license!                                                We decide what is right!”                            providing opportunities. Let me assure
     You need the license before you can
     buy the car.

         As a result, buying a car
             in Singapore is
          very, very expensive!

     Lee also launched Singapore’s first
     tree-planting campaign by planting
     mempat trees to beautify life in the
     city of Singapore.

     This is the Singapore Lee Kuan Yew                          Lee Kuan Yew
                                                                                                                    The Merlion symbol overlooking the Port of Singapore
you the Singaporean system spoils the                                            In contrast, the top schools in the US      don’t tell us Singaporeans                        competition from countries with some
       majority of its citizens. We enjoy the                                           are dominated by the rich and the            how to run this nation.                          of the most vibrant economies in the
       best health-care system in the world.                                            white who have only a superficial un-                                                         world; we have no hinterland or natu-
       Universal medical insurance AND low                                              derstanding of poverty and social in-         It’s still our country.                         ral resources of our own to fall back on
       hospital fees. I have been to the States,                                        justice. At home                                                                              and our future depends on being a dy-
       to Europe, to Japan and Korea, and                                                                                              It’s no longer yours...”                       namic, well educated and self-reliant
       nowhere else is world-class health care                                                  in Singapore,                                                                         people who strive our utmost to excel
       made affordable to all.                                                                                                   Michael Eng Cheng Teo, a Singapor-                   and create wealth for ourselves, our
                                                                                          we walk our streets at night           ean official, reinforced Lee’s philoso-              families and our society. Each genera-
                                                                                           unmolested by crime....               phy: “Each society has to decide for                 tion must earn and save enough for its
                                                                                                                                 itself the appropriate balance between               entire life cycle.......
                                                                                           Here in the United States,            unconditional welfare and self-reli-
                                                                                            I won’t even dream of                ance.
                                                                                                                                                                                             we have substantial
                                                                                              walking downtown                                                                          state subsidies for education,
                                                                                                    once the                       Singapore has concluded
                                                                                                                                                                                                 health care
                                                                                                sun goes down.                         we cannot afford
                                                                                                                                                                                             and public housing.
                            National University of Singapore                                                                     American and European-style
                                                                                                                                        state welfare,                                These are major investments that lift
                                                                                                                                                                                      the skills, promote health and increase
36                       Our education is                                                                                        not because of dogma, but because our                                                           37
                                                                                                                                                                                      the assets of all Singaporeans. The re-
                            top-notch                                                                                            circumstances are different. We face
                               and
                              free.

                                                                                                      downtown Singapore

                                                                                                  I disagree
                                                                                              with many things
                                                                                          Mr Lee’s (PAP) party does.
                                                                                                It’s why I vote
     National University of Singapore (NUS) High School of Math and Science is a           for the opposition.......
     WORLD CLASS, specialised independent high school in Singapore offering a
     six-year Integrated Programme (IP) leading to the NUS High School Diploma,
     which is recognized by the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang
     Technological University (NTU), Singapore Management University (SMU)
     and top AMERICAN universities in the Ivy League like Brown and Harvard,              If you fly off to America or
             and world class universities in England like Oxbridge and others.
     The school offers an accelerated mathematics and science curriculum integrat-
     ed with language, humanities, arts, sports, co-curricular activities, in a modu-
                                                                                                     Europe,
     lar system. It is the second specialized school in Singapore after the Singapore                                                                          Lee Kuan Yew and Hillary Clinton in 2010
                                       Sports School.
sult has been high growth, low unem-     So, what do you think,                       And,
     ployment, high savings and the highest                 Chad?                      could it be                                             From Barack Obama
     home-ownership rates in the world.
                                                                                         possible                                                        to
     Lee Kuan Yew was an admirer of the                                             the United States                                            Prime Minister
     United States of America. Yet, he did                    Is                        would be                                                Margaret Thatcher
     not believe the American system of          the code of conduct and                                                                            of England
                                                                                    a safer, healthier,
     government would have been condu-               laws and penalties                                                                                 and
                                                                                     better educated,
     cive to Singapore success in 1965 nor                enacted by
     today, in the 21st century.                                                 more prosperous country                                       President Xi Jinging
                                                       Prime Minister
                                                                                 where people of all races                                           of China,
                                                        Lee Kuan Yew
           “ America’s media                                                           and creeds                                                  all routinely
                                                         justified by
               beats us up                                                           got along better                                                   met
                                                  Singapore’s impressive
            calling Singapore                                                                if                                                         with
                                                        success of the
               dictatorial                                                          America adopted                                              Prime Minister
                                                    world’s best schools,
                   and                                                                 Singapore’s                                                Lee Kuan Yew.
                                                  the safest place to live,
            authoritarian....
                                                   high median incomes,           kind of government?
       because we have complied
                                                      full employment,
38           with own ideas                                                                                                                                           39
                                                the highest life expectancy                                                         Here’s what they’ve said:
                  of how                                                      Leaders from all over the world regu-
                                                        and harmony
       we should govern ourselves.                                            larly met with Lee Kuan Yew to listen
                                                            among             to his perspective on world affairs.
                                                        diverse races
              America has a
                                                  living in their country?
                 sense of
          cultural superiority...
                                                 Is American democracy
         Their ideas for East Asia             the best government model
               are theories,                         for every country
                not proven.                             in the world
             I do not believe                           regardless of
         the American system is                          a country’s
           either desirable or                        history, culture
                affordable                             or geography?
             for Singapore.”

                                                                                                      Lee Kuan Yew (left) and President Barack Obama in 2009
President Barack Obama:                 John Chambers,                         On March 23, 2015,
                                              Chairman and CEO                          Lee Kuan Yew
        “Lee is one of the legendary               of Cisco:                                 died
      figures of Asia in the 20th and                                                  at the age of 91.
      21st centuries. He is someone       “There are 2 equalizers in life:
       who helped trigger the Asian     the Internet and education! Lee        He spent more than 5 decades in the
                                                                               service of his country, Singapore,
            economic miracle”.          Kuan Yew is a world leader who         including 31 years as the country’s
                 10/29/2009             understands this fact and is us-       Prime Minister until 1990. More than
                                         ing the power of the Internet to      a dozen foreign heads of state and gov-
      President George W. Bush:          position Singapore for survival       ernment attended his funeral, includ-
                                                                               ing Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo
                                            and success in the Internet        Abe, Indian Prime Minister Narendra
     “In my long life, I have encoun-               economy.”                  Modi, South Korean President Park
     tered many bright, able people.                    2000                   Geun-hye and Australian Prime Min-
      None is more impressive than                                             ister Tony Abbott.
             Lee Kuan Yew.”
                   2011
                                                                                Former American president                                Newspaper announcing the passing of Lee

40                                                                                      Bill Clinton                                                                                                    41
                                               Robert Murdoch:
                                                                                             led
     English Prime Minister, Tony             Chairman and CEO
                                                                                    the U.S. delegation
         Blair (1997 to 2007:                       of the                            at the funeral,
                                                    News
       “Lee is the smartest leader I            Corporation.                   which included former secretary of
             think I ever met.”                                                state Henry Kissinger, a close friend of
                   2010                    “Lee Kuan Yew transformed           Mr. Lee’s. Vice President Li Yuanchao
                                                                               represented China.                          lines of mourners waiting up to 10 hours to pay their respects at Lee Kuan

                                         what was the poor, decrepit col-                                                                             Yew’s public wake

     Chinese President Xi Jinping:      ony of Singapore into a shinning,      The question of our time will be -
                                        rich and modern metropolis - all
       “You have my admiration, Mr       the time around hostile powers.                 will Singapore
        Lee. Our country will never      With his brilliant intellect, he is               remain as
       forget the important contribu-    one of the world’s most outspo-                 Lee Kuan Yew
     tion you have made to the China      ken and respected statesman.”                   created it?
          - Singapore relationship.”                   2000                                                               The casket of the late Lee Kuan Yew during the state funeral service at the
                                                                                                                          National University of Singapore’s University Cultural Centre on Sunday.
                                                                                                                          Ministry of Communications and Information of Singapore/Getty Images
                   2011                                                                   Time will tell.
The Words of
                                           Lee Kuan Yew

         “Different races, cultures, religious, languages and histories require different paths to
                                    democracy and the free market.”

                              “the Confucianist belief is society works best
                                when every man aims to be a gentleman....

      this means a man is loyal to his father and mother, faithful to his wife, brings up his children
                                  well, treats his friends properly and
                             he is a good, loyal citizen of his country.........

                       “society takes priority over the interests of the individual...”

        “my colleagues and I realize how we benefited from the tough times in the early years of
     Singapore. We met street thugs. Had we not become streetwise, we would have been clobbered.”

42                “I learned since 1973 that human beings and societies are fragile.......
                                                                                                         43
                         I also realize that people can be made to do better........ ”

     “we must not lose our original languages and cultures and basic strengths. They should not be
      changed unless absolutely necessary. Honesty, meritocracy, multi-racialism, fairness in re-
     wards according to one’s contributions to society. This is why welfare and subsidies destroy the
                                   motivation to perform and succeed.”

     “China’s stagnation in the 1700s was caused by its arrogance and complacency. The Emperor
      Qian Long refused to learn from the West. China paid the price for this arrogance with 200
                                           years of decline.”

     “Singaporeans want a striving, acquisitive community. We must have a desire to improve. We
                              must equate rewards to performance......”

       “A privileged society based on rank and wealth must give way to a society where people are
     rewarded according to their ability and their contributions to society. Everyone should not be
     given equal rewards but equal opportunities. Society should make it worth people’s while to
                                            give their best....”
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