Thursday, December 3, 2009 1:17

Mr Brown’s inSing column taken down after Ministry objects to it

In Main Stories • 1,620 views • 24 Comments

From Mr Brown’s website:

The column I wrote entitled “mrbrown and the flood” was removed from the Insing site because Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts (MICA) the Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources (MEWR) took issue with it and asked for it to be taken down.

From what I understand, MICA’s MEWR’s issue (via MICA) with the column was that it criticized a minister and a ministry.

Read the full article on Mr Brown.

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24 Comments

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the weatherman
Dec 3, 2009 3:37

Sorry Mr Brown,
it is the expected freak response to your freak sense of humour freaking out the ministry of environment which is absolutely clueless on dealing with freak weather.

No freaking sweat I say Mr Brown, those freaking chimps will not be around when the freak weather drops by in 50 years time…….LOL

Ren
Dec 3, 2009 5:56

Yacob is a MORON lar, Taking down Mr Brown’s article makes Yacob even MORE a moron.

These PAP morons don’t dare to let Sinkies know they are morons. Now… which moron donno PAP morons are moron? LOLL

Zefly (aka Joshua Chiang)
Dec 3, 2009 10:12

“From what I understand, MICA’s MEWR’s issue (via MICA) with the column was that it criticized a minister and a ministry.”

Oh yah. we forget. You cant criticize a minister. In our rational politics, you can’t get personal. You can only criticize policies. Which somehow were conceptualized by nobody in particular. They were just ‘born’ on their own.

Master Mentor Hum
Dec 3, 2009 10:28

Blogs like TOC and TR should introduce Mr Brown-style of entertainment to attract the Apathetic who prefer entertainment than face reality and think about reality.

There are so many of these. Its Pathetic.
The mother of all problems.

My wish for x’mas is the extinction of Apathy.

alex tan
Dec 3, 2009 11:01

i agree with Mr Brown we sure need a Ministry of Freak Incident.

the next biggest freak incident that happens for the first time in 55 years is PAP being booted out of Singapore government.
the Ministry of Freak Incident will activate the Ministry of Defense and the army should such freak election results occur as promised by MM Lee.

thehanginjudge
Dec 3, 2009 11:06

mr brown ole mr brown…
they cannot demote you any further..right?
maybe might banned you from wearin a brown tee shirt or eatin pig livers for the rest of your life..
nevertheless my regards to your beautiful wife and your wonderful kids…
truly yours
moshedyan……………

Yagoondoocob
Dec 3, 2009 11:12

Such thin skin one ah, the Yacob? Sounds like a freak to me. All these thin-skin freaks that singies have been voting in … our elections are like freak elections already.

vote them out??

Yakult is better
Dec 3, 2009 11:47

This low tolerance threshold of ministers we called our very own will not bring us very far. The same people singaporean ‘voted’ in need to hear softie softie words from the public? These incumbents are supposed to be fighters, and yet they are the ones that need to be sayang sayang, a bit of criticism wont harm them isn’t it?

As for the people hosting InSing, shame on you for relenting to pressure from these softies!

Moe Gan Thai
Dec 3, 2009 11:56

We got the rights to criticise any minister if they are incompetent . They receive millions of dollars and prevented people from criticise them, then what is the use of paying them so much and yet can’t perform??

Die-Hard Singaporean
Dec 3, 2009 12:09

I thought the PM said it is OK to discuss anything in Singapore. How thin skinned and petty the elite of Singapore can get. No words to describe their mentalities. Pathetic will do I guess.

Seems like in Singapore you can say anything you like so long as you are in Government or the Government approves of what you say.

blindman
Dec 3, 2009 13:43

hahahaha now I know why a certain site in our blogosphere which was recently exposed as a covert site keeps on marketing the idea of DOS and DDOS attacks on their servers. Now it seems they are changing tack and using the direct approach instead, which means that last strategy is probably a dead duck by now.

Waited Too Long For Change
Dec 3, 2009 13:52

This is a clear example of what works behind the scene.

This is an obvious example of the small-hearted intolerance of the Multi-Millionaire PAP $Ministars$.

This is a direct demonstration of secret ‘policing’ works in the shadows to silence dissent, which President Obama has warned about.

This is how the so-called ‘rule of law’ is applied through the ‘rule by law’, the double-standard unwritten laws that manifest in the hearts of the power-crazy.

This is a clear example of applying pressure upon independent writers in the cyberspace to coerce them to conform to the whims and fancies of certain incompetent greedy and lazy Ministars who sits pretty on their responsibility but expect the world’s highest salaries and bonuses.

This also an example of what Singapore and Singaporeans should not condone any more.

Therefore,

VOTE FOR CHANGE! YES, WE MUST! YES, WE CAN!

Humchibeng
Dec 3, 2009 13:58

11) blindman on December 3rd, 2009 1.43 pm
“hahahaha now I know why a certain site in our blogosphere which was recently exposed as a covert site keeps on marketing the idea of DOS and DDOS attacks on their servers.”

Not sure about that but recently my access , even in non-peak hours, to TOC and TR has been significantly slower. sometimes got no access type of message. But refresh can liao. But very slow mostly. Slower than before. Not sure why.
must be bad luck.

Yang
Dec 3, 2009 14:02

We should have the right to comment on the performance of any of the civil servants. Don’t forget that all of them draw tax payer money and by right they should serve us well.

FriedKwayTiaoWithHum
Dec 3, 2009 14:12

13) Humchibeng on December 3rd, 2009 1.58 pm

“…..Not sure about that but recently my access , even in non-peak hours, to TOC and TR has been significantly slower. sometimes got no access type of message. But refresh can liao. But very slow mostly. Slower than before. Not sure why.
must be bad luck. ”

It’s obvious lah, PAP is conducting tests to see how to disrupt the websites of TR and TOC during the “cooling” day.

Pimps And Prostitutes
Dec 3, 2009 14:16

We already have one MM and a couple of SMs. Yeah, next will be an FM. And then… maybe a BM (Blogosphere Minister) to ban MBs (Mister Browns). Sigh. Looks like we have plenty of EFFNTDMs (eat full free nothing to do ministers).

M.M Robert Mugabe of Singapore
Dec 3, 2009 15:31

Million $$$$ Minister ??

No wonder we are in deep shit…

This MIW Minister is paid Million $$$$ salary.

Got caught that he didn’t do forward planning or his job properly.

Made a silly comment to cover his backside.

Got found out and made fun of by Mr Brown.

In a not unkind and humourous way.

He should just smile about it and shrug it off.

… and get on with his job to solve the problem.

Instead the Minister cries like a sissy…

Got his equally sissy buddy at MICA to delete Mr Brwon’s article out.

As if it would help to wipe out the problem and peoples’ knowledge about it…

What a silly arsehole to do what he did and put the spotlight back on himself & his failings.

Wonder what his reaction would be if he got the same kind of barb Gordon Brown got from Jeremy Clarkson ??

http://www.news.com.au/jeremy-clarksons-swearing-attack-on-gordon-brown/story-0-1225754764391

http://www.yeocheowtong.com/Salaries.html

prettyplace
Dec 3, 2009 16:37

I remeber LKY once saying…the opposition cannot even solve your flooding problems….

Now looks like million dollar ministers also cannot……that area Bukit Timah has been flooding for ages…..and yet this incident is a freak…..Oh C’mon….

Just shows that there wasn’t any forward planning…..nor thinking…..

anakin
Dec 3, 2009 17:26

this is not the 1st time Mr Brown got silenced and it won’t be the last…..

anakin
Dec 3, 2009 17:32

kudos to Mr Brown for not stopping what he is doing……

T
Dec 3, 2009 17:42

On a more serious note to solve this frequent flooding problem.

First – the facts – such floodings occur more than once in 50 years. Just during my lifetime, there must have been more than 5 times.

What is probably more correct to say is – such intense rainfall is a once in 50 year occurrence. The canals and drains were designed using old data.

For the last few decades, the Bukit Timah area has seen rapid development of condos (not just in the last 5 years). This has several adverse effects:

a) Natural vegetation is cleared for each project – this increased the surface run-off into the canal since the vegetation that has been removed also removed the ability to retard the run-offs.

b) The cleared lands, though increasing the run-offs, still are able to absorb some water as the land is still permeable. However, this is further reduced when part of the project are concreted over – resulting in more run-offs and discharge into the canals instead of into the ground.

Now, multiply the effect by the tens of condo projects over the years.

So, without those numerous condo projects in Bukit Timah, what used to be a 1-in-50-year rainfall will result in a 1-in-50-year massive flooding. But because of the intensive denuding of vegetation, concreting over permeable ground and human discharge caused by the new condos, even a 1-in-25 year rainfall or 1-in-10 year rainfall can result in similar floodings.

So, it is disingenous to still talk about 1-in-50-year occurrences when there were numerous recorded floodings in that areas over the past few decades.

The whole topography of the area has changed. It is perfectly correct to design the canals for 1-in-50-year or even 1-in-100-year events, but the historical data used should be updated for recent developments.

Ivan
Dec 3, 2009 17:45

Yaacob, get a bloody sense of humour!

sllim
Dec 3, 2009 18:39

I think the broader issue is how behind the times the administration is. Silencing dissenting voices might have worked before but in this day and age? It’s not just bad democracy, it’s horrible politics.

It plays out like PAP is anti-PAP.

(For the record, I am with the administration on this. Freak occurrences are by definition, extremely rare. Policy based on pre-empting them is bad decision-making. Any ruling party will be voted out for sheer tax wastage if every policy is made based on them.)

The minister/ministry should have made a real effort in engaging the people with information, because knowledge is really not that scary, and not shoot itself in the foot. Stoopit.

PG
Dec 5, 2009 11:12

I think this idea of not accepting any other ideas or critisism has to come to an end , its unrealistic . The only thing to say is if you can’t put up with critisism is get off the planet , or go and live on an isolated island .
Its obvious government members and members of parliament would have a nervous breakdown if they had to work in any other countries parliament , and listen to and reply too other ideas and critisism

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