What is the point of patriotism if the govt sells out our future?

I did my 2.5 years NS in the army and 16 years of reservist until 40 of age. The officers kept telling us that we all need to defend our nation and die if we have to protect our country + family.

They said the nation appreciate our sacrifice and acknowledge it. But in reality, I see it otherwise. All the “appreciation” are just lip service.

Nothing from the govt show it’s strong appreciation of the sg men other than some stupid vouchers. We sg men had been sidelined, ridiculed by sg women and FTs.

Now we are taking on menial jobs without any actual career progression. At age 40s or 50s, we better don’t lose our jobs or else we will get replaced by Fts very easily.

The govt is also working against the local sg men by slowing boiling the frogs or pushing more and more of us boomers and gen x towards the edge.

Netizens’ comments

1. Ok actual discussion, we all agree NS is important for national defence. What would be the appropriate compensation for 2 years of NS + reservist? I’m thinking free tiertiary education and appropriate allowance for a start.
2. I think a $1,000 paynow every month into our bank account for the next 5 years would be good. To everyone that has served. Not just Singaporeans.
   That’s $60,000 per soldier. It’s better than giving a lump sum where people might splurge it in 1 go and not that expensive since we are still rich AF as a country and there are lesser kids in the future so they wouldn’t need the NSF pay. This should be the minimum.
3. Gaslighting on a national level
4. In USA, Thank you for your service.
   Here, Chao recruit.. Damn smelly. Take picture shame them for sitting down in mrt.
   Yes, we need a decent salary for NS boys. Not some ‘allowance’ and NS is a privilege shit. Don’t even talk about no moonlighting…
5. Appreciate your service to the nation, it’s true that support can feel less tangible than expected but I think it is more important to remember that there are benefits. If there’s more you can contribute, do reach out with your opinions and support, this might be more productive than just criticising the government which a lot can be done with other subjects.

30 and broke??

Married with a new born, and paying for home renovation and furnishings with cash. No added debt apart from mortgage which is serviceable.

There were structural issues to be rectified for safety, and essentially renovation is wiping out our accounts.

Wife and I have been financially prudent, have some investments not intending to liquidate. The cost of renovation has sky rocketed post covid and gst hike (general consensus after sourcing multiple IDs and contractors and receiving their quotes)

Is this normal in Singapore??

Definitely causing some anxiety

Netizens’ comments

1. Bro, you are not broke, tight in cash is probably better way to put it
2. OP’s not broke at all. You’ve just hit another stage in life when a family hits a milestone that’ll require high initial cost. Your money stash will recover eventually.
   Peeps who are broke are likely unable to afford anything you’re doing.
3. Yes it’s the same for us too. No loan other than mortgage. (Couldn’t justify borrowing for Reno) Reno was 6 figures. Blew our savings wide open.
   Slowly build back your 6 months, then 1 year (maybe longer since you have a kid and all) cash buffer again.
4. I’m 30.no money,no wife no kids no job staying with parents
5. Don’t mind me asking. How much is essential renovation costing before and after covid?
6. Let’s see. You have savings, investments, renovated house, wife, baby… Be honest, are you humble bragging?
7. What’s your definition of broke? Maybe start from there
8. It’s not uncommon for reno costs to escalate, especially post-COVID and GST hikes. Completely understand why wiping out your hard-earned savings is anxiety-inducing but do acknowledge that it’s in fact a win cos that’s exactly what those funds are for
   I do wanna caution OP to avoid feeling impatient and reckless in an attempt to “build back” your savings fast. Given your situation, continue to focus on prudent spending, explore insurance modifications, and set realistic milestones to rebuild savings without taking high risks
   You might see your lost savings as a blow, though it’s in fact a successful save (remember, if you hadn’t had those savings, you’d be worse off).

Happiness is a state of mind.

You just need two basic meals a day. [Yes two meals, three meals is too much and u will get the widespread obesity we r seeing today]. Everybody can afford the 2 × $5 meal a day

Clean air which sg has and provided for free (unless u r stupid enuff to buy the air purifier bs)

Clean water which sg has (unless u r even stupider to buy water purifier bs)

Free wifi which wireless@sgx provides

You don’t need 5c.

Almost all degrees holder can Get min 3k pay

Primary school and sec school and jc r free.

Hdb bto 3 room flat is very affordable.

Basically life in Singapore is good. Sinkies should be grateful

Here are what netizens think:

• 1) not everyone can afford $5 x 2 meals. Your statement showed you haven’t seen poverty in Singapore. Perhaps you can do some volunteer job. I did. Some cannot even afford a simple meal a day

2) air purifier- do you know that there are some people who are allergic to dust?

3) water purifier- some people may have some health issues

4) education are free? Have you asked your parents if they pay anything at all?

• And that’s why our birth rate is declining. Nothing mentioned about starting a family and raising children. Cause apparently our social circumstances are causing people to settle for simple single lifestyle to stay happy.

• Do you live under a rock? There are people who needs air purifier especially those who have sinus and or allergic to dust, pri-jc are NOT free, who told you its free?

• 3k salary is considering inflation is 20 years ago mac salary

• And your point is? Many of us can afford beyond what you proposed if we are reasonably educated. So?

I like reading about so called intellectuals trying to quantify their version of success. It really scares me that almost everyone use money as a form of benchmark. Is that the hallmark of a Singaporean?

A bit of me. I was once extremely smart. I didn’t finish my education properly only because I got unlucky with my roll of dice of life. I get to mix with a lot of people. That’s when I realised there’s 2 groups of people, street smart and book smart. You can get yourself educated up till PhD but you probably still can’t understand how to make the best out of the people under you. At the same time, I know of hardworking individuals who became millionaires through their businesses.

I’m lucky to have met so many smart individuals. I know of a Physics prof who is so cool and laid back. He didn’t care if people think of him as a stupid person. He didn’t feel the need to flex his PhD. A random person on the street will probably think of him as a normal ah pek and he’s chill about that. He’s definitely one of my idols.

One thing I learn in life is that there are many versions of success. What is success to me is probably not success to you. Despite having only A levels, I was lucky enough. I was able to accumulate a wealth of almost a million in under 5 years. Lucky because I sold my HDB flat and got onto the nice bull run a few years back. I was also quite involved in a gig job that pays me $10-15k/mth.

I had a simple target, 1m for retirement. Once I hit that, I got out. And yes, lucky again, because after cashing out, the market crashed. I was lucky that I bought a lot of crypto investments that didn’t fail.

So am I bragging? Partially yes. The main point I wanna focus on is not being greedy. I’m all set for retirement at a young age because I don’t really chase money. I enjoy the process of investing and I was careful about choosing the right product that resonates with me. The profit is just a byproduct.

One thing I learn about investing from my ex colleague is to earn money, you shouldn’t be obsessed with money. Focus on the process, and you’ll eventually make money.

That’s when I went back to school. It’s so cute to see my schoolmates being obsessed with As. They just love competing for the best grades. On the other hand, I enjoy seeing some others helping each other out. These are the real talents. There are too many smart people already. Kindness is a rare virtue these days. These students will have a lot of friends supporting them on their way up.

As for me, I’m just finishing my studies here for the fun of it. Took my fav subject just because. Gonna be $30k poorer which probably won’t increase my income further. Being educated allows you to earn more but most probably didn’t realise that being educated doesn’t make you smarter or better than most others. There’s no need to quantify and rank accordingly.

If you wanna be rich, do business. Most don’t have the guts to do it anyway. Everyone likes to think they are special. It’s only right for them to feel so. That’s how you will feel purposeful in this world.

For me, I’m still enjoying my life eating prata with my teh tarik. That’s how I like to enjoy most of my time. Annual euro trips is mainly because, she wants it and girl math, it’s cheaper to buy luxury goods there than in Singapore.

Personally, I’m just enjoying my time listening to as much music as possible, watching concerts, watching movies. I’m just enjoying that I have the luxury of time for all these. I have friends going on yachts and such. Like I say, different people have a different version of success.

For me, my version of success is being as healthy as possible to live a long life and having all the time in the world to do things that I like. Time is more precious than money, only because your time is finite and time will even become more precious tomorrow than today.

It can be quite intimidating hearing the thoughts of highly intellectuals. I guess not everyone can enjoy their rich lives. I’m just happier doing my own things at my own pace. Tbh, I have no idea what’s my next move after graduation. I’m considering giving back to my community. I think that’s probably something that I’ll want to do next.

Most important of all, I’m just thankful to be born in Singapore. That’s the biggest luck factor that allow me to ‘succeed’ in life. You can argue about Singapore being too expensive, but it’s worth it! And that’s exactly why I believe Singaporeans are all successful in their own different ways. It’s just scary when intelligence and wealth are being used as a form of benchmark for individuals.

To end, I believe luck is the most important factor in your life. Being born in Singapore. Being born to a good family. That’s luck too! Sometimes, you can make your own luck. Put yourself more out there, do things outside of your comfort zone. Keep on trying, and you’ll test the boundaries of your luck. My friends always tell me that I am very lucky. But deep down, I know that I’m a go getter. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Just enjoy life for what it is, ffs! May the odds be ever in your favour.

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