Jeremy Chen's Website

It is my opinion that way too may Christians are ignoring the fundamentals of Christianity in favour of the more interesting: the mysterious end-times and the war on the impure "homosexual agenda". These (mystery and war) are certainly more exciting than Christian fundamentals and definitely are more likely to bring in the dollars. This is not to say that most Christians are eschewing the core teachings of Jesus for more "interesting" topics. I am myself not sure of the numbers. Still, the anecdotal evidence makes me rather concerned.

This article is about accounting. In this article, I explain how the inappropriate focus on accounting issues clouds important issues like the sale/transfer of public assets and enables some to cast doubt on valid concerns related to such matters.

For the past few days, I've talked about increasing public spending the way a "profligate" SDP member would.

(This is a revision of an earlier version.)

Recently, an article titled AIM Saga: Please be fair to PAP put forth a defence of AIM based on argument that software is a depreciating asset and that it is perfectly plausible for the Town Council Management System (TCMS) to have originally cost millions originally but to have depreciated to \$140k from 2003 to 2010.

Today, I read an article explaining the source of a huge gap in educational outcomes between children from well-off families and those from less well-off families. As I am wont to be, I read it and got somewhat stirred up. There is a yawning gap in school achievement in Singapore as well. The reason is the same: different starting points. This results in a distortion in meritocracy. I believe it should be corrected. Here is a proposal. (I do not think such ideas are new, and in so far as I am repeating them, I am repeating them.)

At some point in the recent past, I mentioned that if I had the choice I'd prefer that the best and brightest not take up accounting as a first career. (I even said something to the effect that, I'd prefer that those who did do accounting come from the lower middle or even lowest quartile.) Clearly, that statement would not have been appreciated by accountants. One individual, presumably an accountant, even accused me of saying that only "bottom feeders" do accounting (which was a mischaracterization/“slanderous accusation”, plain and simple), accompanied by some name calling.

While I did talk about what I felt to be the disciplines which are more far more strongly associated with value creation, this was lost on him/her and possibly others. Perhaps my statement was too blunt and thus elicited such an emotional response. (Well, my statement was too blunt, and I won't sugarcoat that.) While I do not regret what I was trying to say, there is regret for the way I said it. Saying that I believe something generates little value does border on offensive, and it is poor form to respond to rudeness (which preceding that comment in the exchange) with such harshness. Let me refine what I said without loss of frankness and truthfulness.