Monday, May 18, 2009

Cree Indian Proverb

Only after the last tree has been cut down, Only after the last river has been
poisoned, Only after the last fish has been caught, Only then will you find that
money cannot be eaten.

-- Cree Indian Proverb

This proverb means that after we have destroyed what natural resources our land has, then we will realise that money isn't everything, and will not be able to provide us with nutrients for survival.

A hypothetical example would be if a country has exported all her natural resources like timber, oil, wool, water, everything, in return for money, then they ultimately have to buy all these goods back from other countries because money cannot be directly consumed; it is just a medium of transaction.

That is why most countries in the world today are so concerned with sustainable development, because there is no point in having a large growth in the present but forgoing future growth so satisfy present needs (of having money). An example would be Singapore which focuses on supply side increment to boost future growth, like NeWater and investment in capital goods (like machinery). For NeWater, we invest a lot of money into trying to develop a method of desalination or converting seawater into drinkable water.

Many countries are not focused enough on sustainable development and they will suffer in the future. An example is Brazil which is clearing their rainforests for their plantations to thrive. This will affect them adversely in the long run because they would not have much natural resources left for future use.

Ruisi, Yadi, Baorong, Serene 09S06J

Do not be fooled into believing that because a man is rich he is necessarily smart. There is ampe proof to the contrary

In today’s world, wealth does not reflect one’s intelligence, but it is about taking opportunity. Teachers are smart, but most of them are not rich. In the modern economy, opportunities are everywhere, and success only comes to those who make the most of them. Opportunity comes in many forms, as inheritance from the family, a business opportunity or just winning the lottery. Richest men in the world are people who do business, not scientists or inventors. A study of Jay Zagorsky, a research scientist at Ohio State University's Center for Human Resource Research, shows that there is no relationship between IQ and wealth. People with high IQ face as much financial problems as low IQ people do.


Besides, with the influence of the media, one does not have to be smart to get rich. The celebrities’ world today is full of people who do not have good education. In sports, players in the EPL or NBA are highly paid. What they do have no relation with intelligence. All it takes are fame, beauty and talents.


In conclusion, there are rich people who are smart, but not all of them. Having low IQ is being handicapped and high IQ means advantage, but it does not tell anything about one's wealth. With globalization, it takes more than just intelligence to achieve success.

-Arjun, Toan, Trung, Lionel (6J)

Sunday, May 17, 2009

“One must be poor to know the luxury of giving.”

As Bill Gates claimed in one of his speeches at Harvard University, we can’t get people excited and involved in the movement to lift the unfortunate out of poverty unless they can see or feel the impact. In a well-developed country like Singapore, images of underprivileged children starving to death and dwelling in poor housing conditions are non-existent except through the media. Hence, logically, many may feel that citizens of such societies, due to their lack of exposure to scenarios of extreme poverty, might lack the ability to empathise and understand the first-hand experience of those victims.

Undeniably, being poor makes it easier for us to understand and empathize what it is like to be poor, and hence appreciating the luxury of giving. However, it must be noted that that is not a requirement. Rather, the understanding of the luxury of giving can be imparted through proper education systems and inculcation of good values such as sharing and giving. For example, the education system of Singapore emphasises on community involvement programmes, which includes helping the poorer people in Singapore through voluntary services and financial/provision aids. By going through such structured educational programmes, students will be able to learn and appreciate from young, the luxury of giving to the financially unprivileged. Therefore, it is not necessary that only people who have been poor can understand the luxury of giving.

Done by:
andrea, claire, joel, kersh, weiliang 09S06J

Don't be fooled into believing that because a man is rich he is necessarily smart. There is ample proof to the contrary. - Julius Rosenwald

The above quote rightly affirms what we often see in society nowadays. Due to the fast pace of globalization and the lack of a level playing field in market economies, we often hear about how "the rich get richer while the poor get poorer". Part of the reason why the ever-growing upper-class is sustainable over a few generations is because the reins of family-owned companies are passed within the family, thus keeping the wealth within the family. As such, children who are brought up in these affluent households may be exposed to only the "good" in life, which may lead them to being apathetic of the plight of commoners in society.

With reference to the article "The End Of Poverty" written by Jeffrey Sachs, only 5 countries have met the goal of making sufficient contributions (7% of the country's GDP) to cut the world's extreme poverty in half by 2015 as based on the UN Millenium Project. It is already the year 2009, and the progress thus far towards the ultimate goal is rather dismal. This could be attributed to the apathy from developed countries, as even "Western officials argue that Africa simply needs to behave itself better, to allow market forces to operate without interference by corrupt rulers". Perhaps corrupt rulers could be blamed for the current situation in developing countries such as India where women in poor states are given the jobs of carrying away the contents of latrines and the men are simply non-existent. But the fact that these countries lack even decent leadership shows the extent of help that should be rendered to them. After all, corrupt leaders are merely focused on personal wealth and success. Helping developing countries "onto the ladder of development, [giving] them at least a foothold on the bottom rung, from which they can then proceed to climb on their own" doesn't necessarily mean removing such leaders. Barriers of trade could be removed and taxes on imports could be lowered. Such actions that impact the commoners directly (and that from international pressure) could give them the voice and confidence to overthrow corrupt officials.

A man who is rich may not be empathetic towards the poor as he has not experienced what the poor are suffering from - diseases, malnutrition, lack of education, etc. It does not make him dumb for being unable to have a first-hand experience of such living conditions, but it makes him ignorant of the less fortunate should he fail to try to understand what they are going through. Jeffrey Sachs also holds the belief that contributing towards eradicating poverty has a monkey see-monkey do effect, as "the broad public will accept such measures [to achieve the 8 goals of the UN Millenium Project], especially if they see that the rich within their own societies are asked to meet their fair share of the burden". Julius Rosenwald is proof that the contrary to the above quote, that the rich can be smart, exists as well as he founded Rosenwald & Weil Clothiers and used his wealth to establish the Rosenwald Fund for "the well-being of mankind". It was initially targeted at African American education, but later expanded to cover the finances of public schools, colleges and universities, museums, Jewish charities and black institutions, donating over 70 million dollars.

- Melissa, Bryan, Chenxuan, Yongsheng, Shiyang! :D (09S06J)
"If you want to know what the Lord God thinks of money, just look at those to whom he gives it." - Dorothy Parker. Discuss.

In the case of Paris Hilton, it is a classic case of rich girl gone bad. Her exploits around Beverly Hills made possible because of her prestigious and affluent background have been in the limelight, topping them all with her recent one day jail term. Evidently, money here could be seen as a catalyst for many or if not all the worries and badness of the world, as goes the cliched phrase of the "root of all evil". God apparently has chosen to bestow money on bad and contemptable characters, illustrating his perhaps distaste or even the little good that he thinks of it. Thus, exacerbating the effect of money as an agent of evil.

Bernard Madoff is other example of placing money in the wrong hands. Making his company one of the top ones on Wall Street, Madoff was believed to be an extremely wise businessman. However, he abused his marketing ability to create the largest ponzi-scam ever in history, whereby almost $65 billion went into his own pockets. Now the money is nowhere to be found. Several charity foundations were forced to close as a result, and victims who were left penniless could have used the money to invest in other business that could have ensured them comfortable lives. Through this example, we cannot not admit that the money is given wrongly to a less suitable person.

While Parker may feel that money was given inappropriately and undeservingly to certain individuals, there are exceptions whereby money was given to kind souls. Bill Gates is known to be one such person. As the founder of a software company Microsoft, he evolved into a philanthropist as well, establishing a non-profit organization named Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. This goes to show the good that people can do with money, and that God sees money as a tool of opportunity instead. By giving money to the people like Bill Gates, who was born into an upper middle class family, wealth distribution around the world can be enhanced and there is hope in resolving poverty problems.

All in all, we believe that money is merely a tool that is utilised by almost each and every human globally. How this "tool" is being used and for what purposes determines its value and worth in society. We cannot say that without a doubt, God has given money to either deserving or undeserving individuals, and thus thinks of the value of money in a certain manner. God has given almost everyone money. What people do with this money is what matters most. We are all given a choice. It depends on what we do with it.

Done by: Serena, Michelle, Xiao Xiao & Chelsia (09S06J)