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Nepal-Tibet floods - reflections of the recent disaster

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The recent Nepal-Tibet floods is a poignant reminder of the power of Mother Nature, and also the desperate situation over there, which was what drove me to join a team back in 2012 and 2013 to go over twice to help. I was there to do some social work, and render assistance, and in our second trip, we even manpacked a portable surgical OT complete with ventilation and curtains, kindly donated by a retired engineer friend. Nepal and Tibet are two mountainous regions, with underdeveloped infrastructure, and some of the toughest terrain you can imagine.  For my first trip there, we had to trek for three days, across ridge-lines and ravines, cross fast running rivers, sometimes on fast rope and metal cables and climb up to 3000m and setup the forward base for the porters who will bring in the heavy stuff. Originally the bus would carry everything, but the roads were full of holes and some roads were half their usual width due to the rains, or simple too dangerous. Whilst the hike was to...
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Consequences of the new ballot measures will on HDB pricing

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The recent slew of measures by the government will affect HDB prices  First the elimination of the waiting period before private property owners can buy HDB  Second the increased chances for young people to own HDB as a result of the higher salary cap and the increase in the number of ballot chances With more eligible people vying for a limited pie, naturally prices will increase and as a result the resale HDB market will also increase too. This double whammy will be most acutely felt by those who don’t fall into the above two groups and now may need to dig deeper to afford a resale or pray for a good ballot as their odds will be reduced relative to the new couples. Then more may turn to the resale market and downstream you may also see an effect on the private property. Singles and those who are looking for a second bite at the BTO and even those downsizing from private will likely pay more.
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How The Chinese EV Companies Have Changed Our Car Buying Landscape

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If you look back just a decade ago, you will find a totally different kind of car buying landscape in Singapore.  There were many cars, which were brought in with the barest of equipment, with plastics that were barely better than the stuff used in Tamiya model kits. And all this was done in the name of keeping the costs and the OMV down. The feature list was bare, the feel was we should be grateful for these barebone models shipped to us from  India, Thailand, Indonesia and other of the factories set up outside of Japan to keep costs low. Conti cars were also sent to us from outside of Germany and Britain. We had factories from South Africa, and Eastern Europe.  You had more blank slots and empty buttons in these cars than actual functioning ones. But you comforted yourself, telling yourself it was all in the name of cost containment.  There was one game changer, and this was even before the Chinese invasion occured. It was the Mazda 3. The plastics used were as goo...
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2026 BZ4x: Things I like and things I dislike

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Things I like - paddles make regen and also braking very easy - the flick up for a single wiper action is very easy to use and simple - the buttons, as a car festooned with buttons, that's a super plus for me - the real door handles, again old school and very nice - real power button - now I know some folks like the auto on and off based on the driver presence, but having a button works better for me - rear digital video mirror - 360 camera and it comes on automatically in close proximity - kick auto boot opening and closing - wireless charging pads And USB 60W wired charging available - memory seats with rear view mirror memory - sunroof - family favorite - solid built and many reinforced areas  - good front view out - rear windows go all the way down - horn works when the engine is turned off - solid ground clearance of 212mm, great for small floods - wading depth of 500mm - well protected armored battery area, will take a solid hit - ten year battery warranty - in Japan it cover...
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Conti luxury or Asian practical and financial prudence ? Ix3 vs RAV4 vs Zeekr 7x

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ST today has two suv style cars on review which were a fairly big contrast  In one corner, the bastion of conti premium luxury is represented by the impress ix3 standing tall at more than 350k and a long feature list plus a highly impressive on paper range of 800km - 580km in reality apparently credit to BMW for developing their own drivetrain and battery system though  then the bastion of old school Japanese reliability and economy is represented by the RAV 4 at close to 250k with a fc of 5.4l per 100km allowing it to go beyond 1000km easily  but it fall short on the feature list and glaringly has no 360camera  The article then throws in a left curve : The elephant not in the room is the zeekr 7 which is priced closer to the RAV but has a similar performance and feature list that won’t feel inferior to the BMW at probably a 100 grand less  for those who have deep pockets and can drop three hundred plus large ones without batting an eyelid, the premium euro...
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BZ4x roadtrip up north and using the NS highway chargers

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So we have our prep done Apps, roaming and lots of fluids and snacks  Firstly the apps Checkpoint app for checking tuas and causeway traffic  ABRP and plug share for EV charging stations  You will also need the actual charging apps There are a whole bunch of Malaysian apps but I’ll suggest you download ChargEV and JomCharge as a minimum- SP app does cover some JomCharge stations but there’s a cover fee  Touch and Go app is required and do put at least M$100 inside to cross the customs. You can still use your TnG card for parking and the toll booths. The immigration apps are kind of useful but not compulsory  So typically, if you can hit the Causeway or Tuas checkpoint before 9am, you are much better off - I took only 15 min to clear both sides. From the customs, we proceeded to checkout the Skudai RnR, where there are quite a few options for charging, located at the various petrol stations and stores. For example the Caltex station has a brace of JomCharge DC ch...
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