Good Quotes —— Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going (4)

In America… there’s a glass ceiling and you are not within the magic circle and will never be accepted. It’s a white man’s country. Maybe President Barack Obama can get by. He’s an exceptional man in exceptional circumstances, but socially the blacks generally don’t mix with the whites.――――From Strangers To Singaporeans

[Lee] does not believe that self-interested nation-states will be able to get together to agree to binding cuts in emissions. He thinks the impasse between developed and developing nations on this issue will remain, as developing nations resist curtailing their emissions so they do not need to slow down their pace of development, and developed nations resist having to transfer billions in wealth to developing nations to pay the so-called “climate debt”. ――――Singapore Greening

[C]ountries like Singapore just have to assume that countries will continue in their drive for development, that emissions levels will not fall to any significant degree, and the world will continue its ride pell-mell on its way to dwindling renewable energy resources and rising sea levels. Smart countries will have to do their sums and do their best to cope with the fallout from such catastrophe. ――――Singapore Greening

I would not want a big population because high density of population makes for tight living conditions…When I go to Hong Kong, even without the pollution I do not enjoy it, due to the density of people…In Hong Kong, their homes are so cramped that they spend almost all of their leisure time outside; they entertain outside.――――Singapore Greening

If we had difficult social and educational conditions, we’re going to have political activism all the time… They will get interested in politics the moment it hurts them. The moment the shoe pinches, they will be jumping around. They’re unemployed, they’ll get interested in politics very quickly.――――Not Your Average Grandad

I don’t believe in love at first sight. I think it’s a grave mistake. You’re attracted by physical characteristics and you’ll regret it… Beauty is skin-deep. You’re just attracted to her physically. And after one, two years of familiarity, you say, oh, I made a great mistake… And she may also come to the conclusion she made a great mistake too. Then you part company.――――Not Your Average Grandad

You’ve got to make the best of the rest of your life. If you start pitying yourself and say, oh why can’t I go back to what I was, then you’re creating misery for yourself.――――Husband, Father, Grandfather, Friend

[Life]’s a parlour game. What is there to regret? I made the decisions given the circumstances, given the knowledge that I was able to obtain at that time, and I picked the choice that would give me the greatest latitude if it should fail, to find another way out. What’s finished is done.――――Husband, Father, Grandfather, Friend

Good Quotes —— Lee Kuan Yew: Hard Truths to Keep Singapore Going (3)

What has Hong Kong got? Property developers and market players. Is Li Ka Shing making a product that is selling worldwide? No, he’s just acquiring real estate, ports, retail stores and telecom companies.――――Keeping The Economic Miracle Alive

Human beings are created unequal, and no amount of social engineering or government intervention can significantly alter one’s lot in life. At most, government policies can help equalise opportunity at the starting point, but they cannot ensure equal outcomes. Society is bound to end up with unequal outcomes, where the more able end up better off financially and socially than the less able.――――Tough Love

From the doctor’s observation about the orthopaedic problems of a closed society whose members intermarried one another, Lee drew two conclusions. One: that diversity enriches the genetic pool. Two: that traits like intelligence――or bone structure――were influenced greatly by genetic heritage.――――Tough Love

With the pressing problems of creating jobs, building homes and schools, Lee learnt fast that talk about an equal society and equitable income distribution rang hollow unless there was income to distribute. He realised it was more important to create wealth first――and worry later how to distribute it.――――Tough Love

[T]he role of the state is to facilitate workers’ intrinsic drives and motivations to compete and do well for themselves and their kin. Those who cannot compete will get help to survive. But the amount of social benefits on offer should never be so attractive that people prefer not to work.――――Tough Love

[A] lone jihadist can cross over from Batam, with a bomb belt. We have to be careful. We cannot guarantee that somebody will not slip through, go into the underground station and blow himself up, or worse, go into the tunnel and blow himself up… [I]f it happens and in a train with 1,000 passengers, we can’t just leave them there to be incinerated. Even if you can rescue only a part of them, you have to try your best.――――Regarding Race, Language and Religion

[L]anguage usage in the world will always evolve and shift… Latin was the language of Europe. Up to the 16th century, many scholars, including Erasmus, wrote in Latin. The Church used Latin. By the 18th century, they were switching into their own languages. Gradually Latin disappeared. Latin is a dead language except for liturgies in the Catholic Church. No one can say English will be dominant forever.――――Regarding Race, Language and Religion