Singapore's '4G' balancing act
Singapore's '4G' balancing actAs expected, the ruling People's Action Party (PAP) won the Singapore general election, which was held on July 10 amid Covid-19 restrictions and the worst economic crisis in decades. Singapore's GDP plunged by 42.1% in the three months to the end of June, the biggest quarterly drop on record. One of the key issues the government may need to rethink is Singapore's economic model which is heavily dependent on global trade. An example of this is the development of Singapore's 5G communications network. Clearly the new generation of politicians will have to oversee a careful balancing act, and meet the changing demands of a new generation of voters.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 20, 2020 00:11 UTC
PPRP set to mull names of new ministers
PPRP set to mull names of new ministersPaiboon: Choices up to PMThe ruling Palang Pracharath Party (PPRP) will submit the names of those it hopes to get a seat in cabinet under its ministerial quota to Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha after a party meeting on Tuesday. The party will discuss a list of people who will be nominated for cabinet seats as a cabinet reshuffle looms. Deputy Prime Minister and party leader Prawit Wongsuwon will chair a meeting of the party's executive committee to consider a range of topics, including the list of would-be cabinet ministers, said deputy party leader Paiboon Nititawan. The three others are Energy Minister Sontirat Sontijirawong, Higher Education, Science and Innovations Minister Suvit Maesincee, and Kobsak Pootrakul, deputy secretary-general of the prime minister. A majority of respondents or 87.7% said they were not confident the names which have been mentioned would work for the good of the country.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 20, 2020 00:11 UTC
Tackling the hunger challenge
Tackling the hunger challengeThe economic and health impacts of the extended Covid-19 outbreak are most worrisome for communities in countries across Asia. That means less income for desperately hungry people to buy food and less food available, at higher prices. All of those factors are worsening another chronic global problem -- hunger, which could become the next big impact of the pandemic. According to the International Food Policy Research Institute, addressing the impact of Covid-19 on hunger and nutrition would require an extra US$10 billion in government spending this year. Multinational food companies have already cautioned that the number of people facing chronic hunger could double to more than 1.6 billion as a result of the pandemic.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 20, 2020 00:11 UTC
Trump calls Biden 'not competent' to lead the country
Trump calls Biden 'not competent' to lead the countryUS President Donald Trump walks from the White House to his motorcade before traveling on July 19, 2020 to his Virginia golf club onWASHINGTON - President Donald Trump assailed likely opponent Joe Biden as "not competent" to lead the country, speaking as polls over the weekend showed deepening voter disenchantment with his own handling of the coronavirus pandemic. "He's shot, he's mentally shot," Trump said about Biden in a wide-ranging interview with "Fox News Sunday." And a new Washington Post-ABC News poll has Biden leading Trump among registered voters nationwide by a resounding 15-point margin, 55-to-40 percent. - 'Mommy, Mommy...' -He repeatedly pummeled Biden, who has kept a relatively low profile amid the restraints imposed by the pandemic. He'll say, 'Mommy, Mommy, please take me home.'"
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 16:07 UTC
Chinese students turn away from US universities
For decades, the United States has been the top choice for Chinese students seeking to continue their studies abroad. The latest statistics from China's Ministry of Education showed overseas Chinese students increased from 285,000 in 2010 to 662,000 in 2018. But now, Chinese students are having second thoughts and this year marks a big change in their choices. A survey of Chinese students by the company found 42% hoped to study in Britain compared to just 37% who nominated the US. Duan said many Chinese students felt horrified by the American measures "issued one by one since last year".
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 11:26 UTC
3 new Covid imports Sunday as hotels warned
3 new Covid imports Sunday as hotels warnedA woman holds a phone displaying the Rao Tiew Duay Kan (We Travel Together) website offering hotel subsidies to promote tourism. Deputy government spokeswoman Traisuree Taisaranakul said on Sunday most of the registrants had reserved for one-night stays in hotels in eastern and western provinces. She warned all hotels joining the programme not to increase their room rates to take advantage of the 40% subsidy from the government. The warning came after several registrants complained of inflated room rates on social media. The rate was now 4,000 baht per night, or 2,400 after the 40% discount rate, she wrote without naming the hotel.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 09:33 UTC
‘Ugly face’: US and China trade barbs in Myanmar
‘Ugly face’: US and China trade barbs in MyanmarThe flags of China, the US and China are displayed in a flag stall at the Yiwu Wholesale Market in Yiwu, Zhejiang province, China, May 10, 2019. (Reuters file photo)China's embassy in Myanmar on Sunday accused the United States of “outrageously smearing” the country and driving a wedge with its Southeast Asian neighbours over the contested South China Sea and Hong Kong, as tensions mount between the superpowers. Responding to US claims Beijing was undermining the sovereignty of its neighbours, the Chinese embassy said US agencies abroad were doing "disgusting things" to contain China and had showed a "selfish, hypocritical, contemptible, and ugly face". The United States last week hardened its position on the South China Sea, saying it would back countries in the region that challenge Beijing’s claim to about 90% of the strategic waterway. The US statement drew parallels between China's actions in the South China Sea and Hong Kong with large-scale Chinese investments projects in Myanmar that the United States warned could become debt-traps, along with trafficking of women from Myanmar to China as brides, and the inflow of drugs from China into Myanmar.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 07:52 UTC
As the pandemic surges, Americans see travel horizons narrowing
As the pandemic surges, Americans see travel horizons narrowingIn the middle of summer vacation season, a sign urges people not to gather in Long Beach, California. WASHINGTON: After months of working from home, stir-crazy Americans have finally reached the long, hot days of summer only to watch their vacation horizons dim, with travel options shrinking as the country's coronavirus cases soar. Summer vacation has long been a staple for Americans. A recent survey by the research institute Longwoods International found that 76% of Americans were prepared to change their travel plans for the next six months because of the pandemic. Result: With domestic travel spending expected to drop by 40%, this year will be no holiday for the travel and leisure sectors.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 05:37 UTC
Students rally for democracy | Bangkok Post: learning
Protesters raise their smartphones in the symbolic gesture of shining a light on Democracy Monument in Bangkok on Saturday evening. (Photo courtesy of jo @Ponlapatz)Around a thousand people led by a group called Free Youth gathered on Saturday near the Democracy Monument in Bangkok to call for democracy. The rally was the first major political demonstration since the end of most Covid-19 restrictions. Other speakers were Mike Panupong, chairman of a group called Eastern Youth for Democracy, Juthathip Sirikan, chairwoman of the Student Unions of Thailand, and Non Nattachon from Eastern Youth. Tattep and Juthathip read a joint statement announcing the end of the rally at about midnight.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 04:37 UTC
95% say 'no foreigners' to prevent 2nd Covid wave: Poll
A passenger is seen at Suvarnabhumi airport on June 9, 2020. Most people in a Suan Dusit Poll still want to ban foreigners from entering the country. (Arnun Chonmahatrakool)A vast majority of Thais -- 94.51% -- say foreigners should be barred from entering the country to prevent a second wave of the Covid-19 spread, according to an opinion survey by the Suan Dusit Rajabhat University or Suan Dusit Poll. Asked how they felt after hearing about the two cases, 52.23% of respondents said they were very worried; 39.68% fairly worried; 6.58% slightly worried; and 1.51% not worried at all. A large majority, 73.82%, thought the chance that Thailand would announce a second lockdown was high while 26.18% said this was unlikely.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 03:56 UTC
Stranded on ships, 200,000 seafarers struggle in virus limbo
Stranded on ships, 200,000 seafarers struggle in virus limboMore than 200,000 thousand seafarers are stranded on ships worldwide because of coronavirus border closures and lockdownsMANILA - Indian ship worker Tejasvi Duseja is desperate to go home after months stranded offshore by coronavirus border closures and lockdowns that have left more than 200,000 seafarers in limbo. Duseja, one of roughly 30,000 Indian workers unable to leave their ships, had extended his seven-month contract a few months before the pandemic struck. - Uncertainty -Philippine luxury cruise ship technician Cherokee Capajo spent nearly four months on ships without setting foot on land due to virus shutdowns. Soon, a number of Carnival-owned cruise ships were stricken with severe outbreaks -- including the Diamond Princess in Japan. Lala Tolentino, who runs the Philippine office for a UK-based seafarers support group, said they had been swamped by "hundreds" of pleas for help from stranded workers since March.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 03:11 UTC
Porsche unveils non-S 911 Turbo with 580hp
Porsche unveils non-S 911 Turbo with 580hpLess potent model could answer the needs of those finding the 650hp Turbo S too wild to drive. Designed to slot beneath the Turbo S, the new Turbo uses the same 3.7-litre twin-turbo flat-six as in its bigger brother but generates slightly less power and torque for the sake of market positioning. The Turbo makes 580hp and 750Nm against the 650hp and 800Nm outputs achieved in the Turbo S. As a result, the Turbo goes from 0-100kph in 2.8sec, 0.1sec slower than the Turbo S.The 991-generation model, on the other hand, has 40hp and 40Nm less than the new Turbo. Visually, the Turbo is hard to differentiate from the Turbo S as various parts are now largely interchangeable on both the marketing and after-sales sides. The 911 story so far:Carrera – 385hp 3.0-litre; 0-100kph 4.2secCarrera S – 450hp 3.0-litre; 3.7secTurbo – 580hp 3.7-litre; 2.8secTurbo S – 650hp 3.7-litre; 2.7sec
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 02:03 UTC
'It's a hoax' say California's anti-mask proponents
'It's a hoax' say California's anti-mask proponentsOrange County Sheriff Don Barnes has said he won't enforce California's statewide mask order including in cities such as Huntington Beach, seen here on July 16, 2020. "It's a hoax," the 51-year-old told AFP as he exited a clothing store maskless, referring to a state rule that people in most public places wear face coverings. "It's my constitutional, God-given right not to wear a mask," said Davey, who declined to give his last name. She said she initially tried to convince friends to wear masks but eventually gave up. Complicating the face mask issue, Wood acknowledged, is the mixed messaging that has come from local, state and particularly the federal government.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 19, 2020 01:18 UTC
Rahm aims at No. 1 after late birdies bring PGA Memorial lead
1 after late birdies bring PGA Memorial leadSpain's Jon Rahm seized a four-stroke lead after Saturday's third round of the US PGA Tour's Memorial tournament. WASHINGTON: Jon Rahm, chasing the world number one ranking, birdied four of the last six holes to seize a four-stroke lead after Saturday's third round of the US PGA Memorial tournament. Rahm sank a five-foot birdie putt at the par-5 seventh but found a bunker and made bogey at the par-3 eighth. In his late charge, Rahm sank a 13-foot birdie putt at 13, dropped his approach just beyond four feet and sank the putt at 14, holed a three-foot putt at the par-5 15th and rolled in a 26-foot birdie putt at the par-3 16th. "It was good and then it wasn't good," Finau said.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 18, 2020 22:41 UTC
The Pleasure's All Hers
Her second album, Tough Love, was an equivalently elegant undertaking, albeit marred by the 2017's rather anticlimactic, domestic life-themed Glasshouse. THE PLAYLISTSpecial Interest / Street Pulse BeatKnown for their bombastic blend of electronic, glam-punk rock and industrial, Special Interest have been amassing a bit of a cult following since their 2018 debut Spiraling. Street Pulse Beat, the latest cut from their second LP The Passion Of, finds the New Orleans queer four-piece taking their sound to the dizzying (and unapologetic) heights. "Won't you take my wild rough hands to the rhythm of the street pulse beat," offers vocalist Alli Logout atop a ferocious goth-punk throb. Rich Brian / Love In My PocketChinese-Indonesian rapper Rich Brian must have been listening to Tame Impala a lot lately, because his new single Love In My Pocket sounds suspiciously like Kevin Parker has a hand in it.
Source:Bangkok Post
July 18, 2020 21:45 UTC