Negative examples

SINGAPORE: Most road users thought positively of themselves when asked to rate their level of safety and graciousness. But when it comes to the behaviour of others, those surveyed thought negatively of them. This was among the findings of a nationwide study conducted by the Traffic Police. It involved 1,000 respondents from various groups such as car drivers, cyclists and personal mobility device (PMD) users, taxi drivers, elderly pedestrians and parents of young children. The findings, released on Saturday (Jul 6), showed that for car drivers, for instance, seven in 10 said they avoid tailgating, while eight in 10 said they indicate their signals early. However, only three in 10 car drivers felt others did the same. Similarly, six in 10 motorcyclists said they avoid weaving in and out of moving traffic, but only three in 10 felt the same of others. For PMD users, nine in 10 felt that they look out for others on shared pavements. Only two in 10 perceived the same of other … [Read more...] about Are you a good driver? Most think positively of themselves, view others negatively: Traffic Police survey

Dr Youssef El-Gingihy , who works in a GP surgery in Oxfordshire, having transferred from Tower Hamlets after a decade of practice in London, authored the book How to Dismantle the NHS in 10 Easy Steps: The Blueprint That The Government Does Not Want You To See . Dr El-Ghingihy reviewed the UK Government's White Paper on proposed changes to the NHS for Sputnik and explained that he doesn't see a "massive U-turn" from the policies of prior governments but rather a continuation of the steady process of privatisation. Sputnik: Briefly explain the key aspects of the proposals in the White Paper, in respective of changes to the NHS, that has been published by the current Tory government, including plans to reverse Health and Social Care Act 2012. Dr Youssef El-Gingihy: So, I think that the key proposals are, as you pointed out, reversing the competition element of the Health and Social Care Act and presenting the Health Social Care Act as a failure, essentially. On the … [Read more...] about Latest NHS ‘Reforms’ Are Actually Designed to Further Privatisation of Health Care, Argues Doctor

China’s economic recovery is notable, some analysts say, after suffering serious pandemic-driven setbacks for the majority of last year. By most accounts, China’s economic numbers at the start of its lunar new year in early February was more significant than those put out by governments in other developed countries. “China’s policy to control the pandemic was very strict. Also, the capillarity of the Communist Party made the implementation of these strict measures easier than in other parts of the world,” Lourdes Casanova, director of Cornell’s Emerging Markets Institute, told VOA. The situation has been different in many democratic countries that found it difficult to use harsh measures to control the spread of the disease and impose lockdown as a tool to enforce social distancing. China’s gross domestic product expanded by 6.5% in the fourth quarter of 2020. The economy grew 2.3% in 2020, according to Chinese government data. The turnaround has surprised economists because … [Read more...] about China Posts Impressive Economic Recovery, but Can Growth Continue?

SINGAPORE: In our development as a nation, we have converted most green spaces in Singapore to meet human needs. While we have made an attempt to incorporate nature into our urban environment, the shrinking of natural habitats will inevitably lead to more intimate interactions between humans and wildlife. The recent encounter between a woman and a wild boar at Sungei Api Api reinforces some of the challenges that will occur when a jungle turns concrete. This wasn’t the first such incident – there were other instances over the past year of boars, otters, monkeys and hornbills coming into close contact with humans and these instances will continue. There are many reasons why conflict between humans and wild animals may occur. A significant contributor to the problem is the act of feeding these animals. Such cases are regularly reported. A group was caught feeding wild boars during the circuit breaker and in early December, a man was captured on video feeding two … [Read more...] about Commentary: To reduce wildlife attacking humans, stop feeding them

SINGAPORE: While Singapore has sufficient capacity in its healthcare system to handle the COVID-19 outbreak, the country cannot be complacent and needs to preserve its buffer capacity, Health Minister Gan Kim Yong said on Wednesday (Mar 25). Addressing Singapore’s COVID-19 situation in Parliament, he said that with a significant number of imported cases from returning residents and visitors, the authorities have progressively put in place travel restrictions and placed returning residents on stay-home notice and quarantine. READ: COVID-19: Singapore expands contact tracing teams to prepare for surge in cases READ: Singapore scientists plan to start testing COVID-19 vaccine this year: Gan Kim Yong However, there is still a risk of them leading to more localised transmissions, he said. As more clusters emerge, the authorities’ contact tracing, quarantine and healthcare resources will be stretched, he cautioned. “If the clusters grow too large, such as those we see … [Read more...] about Sufficient capacity in healthcare system amid COVID-19 outbreak, but Singapore cannot be complacent: Gan Kim Yong

SINGAPORE: Their dining area remains empty — the workers are not allowed to eat there. And so Omar Sakib must have his meals in his room instead, with his 11 other roommates. They cannot “gather” in the dormitory corridors either. “We’re only allowed to go to the toilet, use the toilet and come back to our room,” he said. “There are so many restrictions still in my dorm, so I feel like I’m in lockdown.” It has been nearly a year since COVID-19 started to hit foreign worker dormitories, and about six months since most of the workers could return to work. But for some of them, life has not changed much. Sayed, for example, lives in a smaller room than the one in his previous dormitory. There are 10 of them there, but “still 16 beds inside”, which means a lack of space. “It looks overcrowded,” he said. Space, or a lack thereof, is not all that gets to Richard Rosales; he is also “very sad” that he “can’t do anything”. “(It’s) like (being) in jail, just eating, watching … [Read more...] about A year since COVID-19, dorm life leaves migrant workers still hoping for better