Comments by "" (@manofsan) on "PolyMatter" channel.

  1. ​ @Diệp Triệu - that sounds contradictory. In Soviet Union, you could vote for all parties available on the ballot - which was just the one communist party. In Iran, people can vote for whichever candidates are running for office - except that the Council of Guardians gets to disqualify any candidates it doesn't like. In order for elections to be free, they must be fair. Are opposition candidates free to campaign whenever they want? No - so that's not free. Are opposition members permitted free access to information on when elections will be called? No - so that's not free either.
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  2. And what keeps it efficient? What keeps corruption away? Singapore's ruling elites do have corruption, and just because that corruption is hidden from view and from discussion or critique, doesn't change the fact that it is there.
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  3. Your video is misleading -- it totally neglects the strategic benefits to China from some of the select countries it gets into its Debt Trap. Hambantota, Gwadar, Djibouti, and also Myanmar. China is trying to build the Kra canal - don't tell me that doesn't have a strategic/military angle to it.
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  4. More countries are moving to avoid the Chinese Debt Trap strategy that PolyMatter claims doesn't exist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zHKdZJO3nmI
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  5. I agree with your assessment that Qatar is not free -- but I strongly object to your citing "Freedom House", which is a mouthpiece from the Cold War. All you're doing is laundering the Cold War propagandism. "Freedom House" is a very slanted organization with a very slanted narrative, and for you to be legitimizing them through citation tells me something about you.
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  6. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Where there is no accountability, corruption will inevitably prevail.
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  7. ​ @ᴍᴍs - when politics involves corruption, and corruption affects your life, then you need to have a say in politics. A govt where people don't have a say is one that will inevitably go bad. If people don't have a say, then what is keeping the Singapore govt performing well? Magic? The rulers of Singapore will eventually become like a royal monarchy, where the leaders will put their own kids in power after them, and they will then put their kids in power, etc, etc. Monarchy is the world's oldest dictatorship, and it doesn't always work out well. Leaders' relatives are not always the best choice to run things well - but this will inevitably happen in Singapore.
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  8. ​ @ᴍᴍs - leaders also need discipline, and only the people can provide the right kind of discipline, by getting their say in governance. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Leaders will not magically stay benevolent over time, without the will of the people.
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  9. ​ @ChineseKiwi - no, I disagree - smaller countries are more vulnerable, and shouldn't be taken advantage of. By downplaying their victimization, you're only abetting it.
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  10. Happy holidays - but again, you're lying when you say that China's lending is with benign or innocent intent: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DgL5MKHY7qE
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  11. I think Norway's remoteness and low immigration also somehow have something to do with it. Social populism hasn't penetrated the country much yet. This can't last forever -- at some point, some party will come to power that will break open the piggy bank -- you know it's going to happen.
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  12. ​ @agapp11able - again, same old cliches about making the trains run on time. The fact is that despotism inevitably falls into corruption and cronyism. Without the public to keep governing institutions in check, they won't keep themselves in check, and will deteriorate over time.
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  13. ​ @agapp11able - so you again imagine that govt is wisest, and public are fools. Those in power have a conflict of interest - their own interests vs public interest. That cannot be ignored, much as you'd like to.
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  14. Please give examples of which deals from others are worse than the ones with China. The Chinese are very ruthlessly taking advantage of poorer countries with ridiculous stipulations.
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  15. KMT was founded by mainlanders, strongly opposes Taiwan declaring independence, and have been increasingly courted by Beijing to gradually become appeasers.
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  16. @ᴍᴍs - there is no such thing as "benevolent dictator" - that's an oxymoron and an illusion for the gullible. What magical force would keep any such dictator benevolent? Such a situation would quickly deteriorate into bad dictator or else monarchy. Usually, so-called "benevolent dictator" is the one who is merely most successful in silencing their opponents.
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  17. ​ @John Koh - China-sponsored propaganda. BRI is brand new, while G7 is very old. China is only building infrastructure for itself, which it plans to take back from the other countries. You complain against US, but then you do same thing as US. China is Imperialist power. BRI = Belt & Road Imperialism.
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  18. Polymatter is acting as Beijing's apologist when it claims that China isn't engaged in predatory lending: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hbBHpOqyWn0 The reality is that China has a clearly established track record of such predatory lending, and has been profiting at the expense of underdeveloped countries whose naivete it has been preying upon.
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  19. ​ @ChineseKiwi - the fact is that China is a predatory lender, and other countries need to beware of entering into deals where they'll be fleeced by China.
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  20. Again, China's Debt Trap handiwork is all too self-evident, except for those who blind themselves to it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvHGtGnMyq0
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  21. Power corrupts - and absolute power corrupts absolutely. Supporters of dictatorships have long praised them for "making the trains run on time." These arguments do nothing to overcome the fact that an unchangeable ruler is an unaccountable ruler. Lack of accountability invites and encourages corruption.
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