Quote 310 of 497

Supposing we had chosen Chinese or tried to sponsor Chinese, how would
we make a living?  How would we fit ourselves into the region and into
the world?  We could not have made a living.  But the Chinese then
would have wanted it.  And if we had taken the vote, we would have had
to follow that policy.  So when people say, 'Oh, ask the people!' it's
childish rubbish.  We are leaders.  We know the consequences. ...
They say people can think for themselves?  Do you honestly believe
that the chap who can't pass primary six knows the consequences of his
choice when he answers a question viscerally, on language, culture and
religion?  But we knew the consequences.  We would starve, we would
have race riots.  We would disintergrate.
		-- Lee Kuan Lew, quoted in "East Meets West", by
		   Daniel A. Bell, p. 205.
		   isbn:0691005087

Tags: religion vote consequences chap rubbish lew viscerally languageculture eastmeetswest leekuan primarysix raceriots danielabell