Citizens are conscripted into the military. They spend two years at the prime of their youth in the army getting paid almost nothing. And after that two years is over, for the next 10 years or so, they have to go back to reservist military training for several weeks annually.
They also have to pass the annual military fitness test otherwise they will have to go back to the military to do further physical training in the evenings for weeks even if they have a job. Throughout their 20s and early 30s, most of them cannot even have long hair due to this military duty. Penalty of avoidance is military prison of 3 years. When they go overseas for work or other reasons for longer period of time, they need to apply for an exit permit from the military like a leash. When they go overseas for short periods of time, they still have to notify their military unit first.
People die or get injured all the time in the army during their conscription period.
And then you have foreigners coming over and complaining they are not getting subsidized services when they also pay tax.
Why don't you first talk about the responsibilities of these "first class" citizens before talking about their privileges.
The utility of a car in singapore is very different from other places. Yes, a car will get you faster from point A to point B in singapore when compared to public transport. But you can get a private hire car or a taxi which is just as fast and is probably much more convenient.
For many people in Singapore, a car's real utility is to signal status. More often than not, this status gets you real-life benefits. Such as increased dating success.
Yes, because when adjusted to car ownership costs, the young have a lower purchasing power when compared to the older generation at the same age back then.
I'm not sure that's a good lens to look through: the total number of cars in Singapore is fixed, and ownership cost adjusts (via the CoE auction) to balance supply and demand.
So there's no drop in total car ownership to explain: that one is held fixed. What we'd need to explain is why comparatively more older people and fewer younger people drive.
Singapore residents are not limited to one car. There's a lot of regional ultra rich in Singapore, and it's not unusual for them to have half a dozen or more cars, all of which count against the total cap.
Singapore's population has exploded in the past 20 years, almost doubling due to immigration. Native birth rate has collapsed.
Many relatively wealthy foreign individuals have moved to Singapore, disproportionately middle aged and above. These folks also compete in buying car quotas. They can also buy more than one car. Their demand is more inelastic.
Younger folks, local or foreign born are priced out.
For Singapore's boomers, success once meant the 5 Cs: cash, car, credit card, condominium and country club. For today's young Singaporeans, these no longer define success.
They also have to pass the annual military fitness test otherwise they will have to go back to the military to do further physical training in the evenings for weeks even if they have a job. Throughout their 20s and early 30s, most of them cannot even have long hair due to this military duty. Penalty of avoidance is military prison of 3 years. When they go overseas for work or other reasons for longer period of time, they need to apply for an exit permit from the military like a leash. When they go overseas for short periods of time, they still have to notify their military unit first.
People die or get injured all the time in the army during their conscription period.
And then you have foreigners coming over and complaining they are not getting subsidized services when they also pay tax.
Why don't you first talk about the responsibilities of these "first class" citizens before talking about their privileges.