[PAYM's 35th Anniversary]
I was invited to the People's Association Youth Movement's 35th Anniversary Celebrations this evening at the new Cathay cineplex just opposite SMU.

It was a special screening of the movie Happy Feet (which I will talk about later in the post).

I must say the seats in the new cineplex are noticibly larger that those at GV at Plaza Singapura. Not sure about those in VivoCity as i haven't been there yet. But I was more than content chilling out in hall 7.

Surprisingly, there was no birthday song, candles or a big cake. Instead every guest received a cake from Polar cakes and puffs. It's very personalised with the logo and all. As I will only have it for breakfast tomorrow, I can't tell you whether it is delicious as yet.



The movie Happy Feet starts with a chrous of songs and has scenes of a globe, landscapes and then finally, the stars of the show appear - the penguins.

It is quite similar like most animated (a la Ice Age 2) movies and the plot's generally the same. A penguin couple falls in love and they have a baby penguin named Mumble (voiced by LOTR star Elijah Wood) who is different from everyone else. It's just like the ugly duckling story - great for kids. No prizes for guessing, Mumble saves the day in the end.

There are a lot of adventure elements throughout the entire movie with elephant seals and whales. And even an encounter with eagles. There is no shortage of surprizes.

So while the clan of penguins that Mumble grows up in woos their other half with songs, Mumble who is different only manages with his off-pitch screech. And is the nightmaire of every headmaster. But then far from the madding crowd, there lies another species of penguin - that well, keep themselves happy with their, you guessed it, feet. And they break out spontaneously in song with their 'hip hop' moves (there were no P65 MPs present in the movie) and footwork.

The adventure element is not lacking in this one. Lest you think it is all about adventure, there are also lots of breakouts into songs - oldies and top hits - no less. I felt like singing when i watched it. Maybe next time when they release the DVD version I can sing along.

Interstingly, this is the first animated movie that I've watched that features real life humans with close interaction. There's even a 'UN debate' on the interference with the food chain of the penguins (halfway in the movie, the entire generation of penguins are deprived of their source of fish and a curious Mumble vows to find the root cause).

Are there really aliens around? Are they the ones responsible for the disapppearing fish?

You have to watch Happy Feet to find out.

Okay. On to serious stuff - the impending (yes it is impending) GST hikes.

My view is that raising the GST to 7% is just a little 2 points up so no big deal. Although if it keeps getting up, up and up, it may be too hot to handle. Perhaps it should be capped at a certain percentage - maybe 10% or something.

VAT in Thailand is 7% and other countries have much higher tax rates. And by the time it is our new GST is passed during budget debate next year, we would have had sufficient time to adjust to it. Those who had saved their progress package payouts would be the ones laughing now - it's a good idea to save up for rainy days.

Apart from listening to the grouses, I believe what needs to be done is to formulate policies that will really benefit the people in the lower income range. Our Gini coefficient has been rising through the years (I know this and it is thanks to my attentiveness during sociology class). It is no doubt that the income gap in Singapore is widening.

Singaporeans are very good at formulating policies. But how efficient these policies are, we have yet to see. Maybe to be more transparent, policy makers should have varied solutions for the different groups. What's most important is to let Singaporeans know that the process is one that is all encompassing and transparent. That is what leaders have to do - to convince those on the ground that what they are doing is for their benefit.

This way, everyone has a fair share in know what goes behind the debates and the stand of the Government and how these new or add-on policies will really benefit needy families (or those that are in the lower percentiles of the income range).

The way I see it is that the Government wants each and everyone to be self-reliant. Although there is no real safety net, there are policies drafted to help those that sincerely need the assistance.