3 issues to ponder over...

There are just too many uninformed opinion pieces about the international politics of the Iran nuclear issue. That is why I highlight any that I find insightful. TODAY (12 March) has a well-nuanced piece on the issue, "Don't play politics with the bomb,"  written by Philip Stephens, chief political commentator at the Financial Times. Here's the link and an extract:

http://www.todayonline.com/Commentary/EDC120312-0000009/Dont-play-politics-with-the-bomb

A military strike now would be positively perverse. Coercive diplomacy and sanctions have only recently begun to bite. A tightening financial noose is seriously limiting Iran's ability to trade.

The European ban on Iranian oil imports tightens the screw. The West, in other words, has finally raised significantly the cost to the regime of refusal to meet its international obligations. The process must be given time to work.


Mr Netanyahu protests otherwise. Iran, he says, will soon enter a "zone of immunity". Nuclear facilities buried deep underground will be rendered invulnerable to air strikes. Yet once again the Israeli Prime Minister has declined to present solid evidence for the now-or-never analysis. Europeans conclude it owes more to politics than to physics.

Such doubts are shared within Israel. Mr Meir Dagan, the retired Mossad chief, talks about an Israeli strike on Iran as "the stupidest thing I have ever heard". Serving officials in the Israeli security establishment voice similar doubts -- in less colourful language -- when they meet European and US counterparts.

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Another commentary in the same TODAY edition is worth a definite read. It is about the "next web tool poised for explosive growth". It's called Change.org. Read about how ordinary people can make a difference...

http://www.todayonline.com/Commentary/EDC120312-0000010/The-next-big-thing-in-cyberspace?

Here's the Change.org website itself...

http://www.change.org/

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Finally, like the letter writer below, I found what he or she has to say troubling. I expect replies soon from both IRAS and DBS Bank...

Can banks pay Govt bodies without one's knowledge?

Letter from Ng Lee Koon (TODAY, 12 March)

 

When I returned to Singapore after being away for nine months, I found a note of demand from the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore (IRAS).
I called the IRAS and was told not to worry. The money had been transferred from my bank account to the IRAS to pay for my income tax.

I did not have any standing order for income tax payment to be made through GIRO, but a POSB service manager told me that DBS Bank is an acting agent for the IRAS and has the right to deduct from a customer's account when instructed by the authority.

I wish to clarify if it is not more appropriate for the bank to freeze the account so that the account holder is at least alerted. Can banks pay Government bodies directly on behalf of the account holder, without his/her knowledge or authorisation?

Is this standard practice for all banks here and worldwide, or is this an arrangement between certain banks and the IRAS? If it is the latter, which are the banks? Are their customers aware of such an arrangement?