NationStates Jolt Archive

I'm back.

As everybody know,I am the resident anti-Bush and occasionally anti-American poster on these forums,hailing from the sunny island of Singapore in South East Asia.

Out of curiosity,I want to ask a few questions.

First off,Singapore is a very good friend of the USA.Any decisions that they make regarding South East Asia,they run it by us as its our sphere of influence,with us being the dominant military(air and navy) and economic power there.Simply put,it's as good as our backyard.They ask for advice when they want to make a move in our sphere of influence.For example,just to illustrate an example,we are the largest foreign investor in Vietnam and control its economy,as well as the largest holder of American bonds besides Japan.We are also the logistics base for the USN in the Pacific,the only other stop between Pearl Harbour in Hawaii and Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean.

We are also the only country to have a permanent military detachment based on American soil,an RSAF(Republic of Singapore Air Force) unit that trains regularly with your USAF.That's how good relations between our 2 countries are.

We also maintain very close ties with India and China,the other major powers,as well as foster close friendships with Malaysia,Indonesia,Thailand,Japan,Vietnam,Russia,France,Britain,Australia,NewZealand,Pakistan,Israel ,Taiwan and Iran.

I'm just curious as to how Americans,if they even know about us,view our ties with nations such as France and Iran.Recently,we opened negotiations wit Iran for a free trade agreement,and we are developing weapons jointly with the French.

Does it irk the American govt that a close ally has ties with many countries it considers "persona non grata"?Just curious.

The U.S. doesn't care.

The British have very close ties with many nations that the U.S. views with some measure of suspicion. So does Poland, Bulgaria, Romania, Thailand, etc...They don't care who you deal with so long as you don't bite their hand when they ask for a little help. Israel has very close ties with India, yet India is on the rocks with the U.S..

Singapore may be small, but at least it gives that tacid thumbs up when asked to.

i can tell all americans that most persians hate your guts

i can tell all americans that most persians hate your guts

I think the feeling is probably mutual, even though I believe most Americans will confuse Iranians/Persians for Arabs most of the time...

I think the feeling is probably mutual, even though I believe most Americans will confuse Iranians/Persians for Arabs most of the time...
Probably is mutual. I tend to hate those who hate my guts.

I don't care one way or another about Singapore's close ties to Iran.

While it's not strategically smart, it's politically smart. Remember: Most battles aren't fought with guns any more, they're fought over the telephone and through blackmail.

Take the free trade agreement with Iran, for example. If Iran decides to act up, we take it away from them and thus screw them over. At least for a little while. We will scratch your back for good behavior, but you will be punished for bad behavior.

And France... I don't understand why the United States is sharing its weapons information (granted, it won't be the most updated of weapons information but still sufficient) with a country that will never use them.

For the record: I have nothing against Persians, Iranians, Arabs, etc. Absolutely nothing.

Actually my understanding is that a great many younger Iranians like America in this "grass is greener on the other side" kind of way. The older ones remember how our government put the Shah in power, the bloody-handed despot who ruled with an iron fist.

Knowing this, I was deeply disappointed after 9/11 when Iran made unprecedented sympathetic and conciliatory gestures, Bush slapped them with the "Axis of Evil" label. I don't like their current government, but I completely believe that it's better than the one we gave them, and that the one the next generation of Iranians will demand will be better still.

That said, I salute Singapore's pragmatism. If America can give China most favored trading partner status, surely Singapore can do as it pleases.

I don't care for Singapore's incredibly draconian laws. Unfortunately, I don't know too much about them other than that, which is the fault of my own ignorance.

Singapore's a nice nation. Very sunny!

The US is an authoritarian capitalist dystopia. Singapore is an authoritarian capitalist hell.

Authoritarian it may be, but if the weathers nice I'll go there....

i can tell all americans that most persians hate your guts
And I can tell you that you're probably wrong. Most of the young population of Iran is favorable to the U.S., and the older generation is more pro-Khomeini because he overthrew the Shah than they are anti-American for propping him up. Sure, there was a lot of resentment toward the U.S. for the act of propping up the Shah, but they were generally more upset at the Shah himself. After all, he was the one who squandered a lot of Iran's budget on palaces, mid-life crises, and the northern half of Tehran; the U.S. never told him to do that.

americans only know about singapore through gay s&m pornos because singapore is a favorite setting for such films since the government likes to cane teenage boy's and young men's asses.

I can see that most ppl don't know much abt my country.understandable.

Regarding the draconian laws bit,yes,some of them are draconian,but our situation warrants its.I'm not going to argue when men who rape women are lashed with canes by the police,canes which leave permanent physical scars and sometimes mentals scars,much like these men to do women that they rape.

I'm not going to argue against laws that allow drug dealers and drug traffickers to be hanged for trying to sell 15g of heroin or cocaine or 1.5 kg of cannabis,it keeps it off the streets and I do't have to worry about my sisters or cousins getting their hands on such drugs.

I'm not going to argue against laws that let police whip vandals who spray graffiti everywhere and damage the property of others.I can at least be sure that my property is protected.

I am not going to argue against a system that lets me walk out at 2 am or 4 am in most parts of Singapore without having to worry about getting mugged,to go out late and have supper with my friends and family.


Before you choose to say more things about my country,perhaps you can research more about it before condemning our laws which may seem draconian to you but which are suited for our culture and situation as it is.

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btw,let me tell you something;My country is less reliant on the USA now for its armaments sales now,as the US tends to use armaments purchases to apply diplomatic pressure to get its way.An example is when the USA withheld AMRAAM missiles from us because they were trying to maintain some power balance as they saw fit within the region.An example why when we buy from the USA,we now insist on a technology transfer as well as physical shipment and storage of the weapons on our own soil before anything else.As well as the fact that we buy European,Israeli and Indian technology and weapons more now as well as make our own.