[Xisiqomelir]

It's Singapore



http://www.mysinchew.com/node/73512

Ferrari crash fuels Singapore anti-foreign sentiment Foreign 2012-05-14 17:56 Singapore, May 14, 2012 (AFP) - A wealthy Chinese expatriate who crashed his million-dollar Ferrari into a taxi killing himself and two others has sparked outrage in Singapore, where anti-immigrant sentiment is on the rise. Websites were swamped Monday with postings attacking Chinese and other foreigners in the city-state after it was reported that a 52-year-old local cabbie had died of his injuries following Saturday's pre-dawn accident. The crash instantly killed the 31-year-old Ferrari driver, Ma Chi, while the taxi passenger, a 41-year-old Japanese woman, died in hospital two hours later, a police spokeswoman told AFP. Police gave no other details but local media said the Ferrari driver was a financial adviser from Sichuan who was applying for permanent residency and already living in a Singapore penthouse with his family. Disgruntled locals seized on the incident as another reason to attack the government's immigration policies and the presence of more than a million foreign workers and professionals in the crowded city-state. Foreigners are blamed for pushing up living costs, straining public transport and stealing jobs, with mainland Chinese bearing the brunt of attacks. The Straits Times newspaper said the Ferrari was a limited-edition model that Ma had bought for Sg$1.8 million ($1.43 million) for his 30th birthday last year. Pictures from a video of the accident published in local newspapers showed Ma's car apparently ramming the taxi after he allegedly ran a red light following a night out with friends. Hundreds of indignant comments were posted online. "I hate to drag nationality into this tragedy but the stupidity of a single (Chinese) possibly drunkard driver has caused such catastrophic damage to so many people," Tan Wee Meng posted on Facebook. Singapore's population grew from 4.4 million in 2006 to 5.2 million in 2011, largely the result of a higher intake of immigrants as well as guest workers and professionals. The accident came two months after a Malaysian cleaner at Singapore's Changi Airport was killed after he was hit by a taxi hijacked by a Chinese guest worker. The government's more open immigration policy was a hot issue during the general elections in May 2011 in which the ruling People's Action Party garnered an all-time low of 60 percent of the vote.

Usually, videos are somewhat inconclusive, but I really don't think it's the case for this video.

YouTube

[shagg_187]

That video. Holy hell. Sad that he took someone else's life with him. This is why you should never drink and drive.

[whitehawk]

Oh my god. The driver of the car the camera is in is EXTREMELY lucky he wasn't driving as fast as the taxi.

[Dreams-Visions]

that video. holy shit.

edit: who was the 3rd casualty? I expected it to be the taxi driver, but the article doesn't mention the driver. just the passenger?

edit 2: I like how they just kept right on driving like nothing was wrong...

[Le-mo]

Wow, that was nasty.

[bachikarn]

holy fucking shit

[SirChained]

I fucking hate drunk drivers.

[Xisiqomelir]

that video. holy shit. edit: who was the 3rd casualty? I expected it to be the taxi driver, but the article doesn't mention the driver. just the passenger?

Ferrari driver, Taxi driver, taxi passenger

Ferrari passenger in critical care

[criesofthepast]

Fucking asshole. Rip to the innocent.

[shagg_187]

that video. holy shit. edit: who was the 3rd casualty? I expected it to be the taxi driver, but the article doesn't mention the driver. just the passenger? edit 2: I like how they just kept right on driving like nothing was wrong...

"Websites were swamped Monday with postings attacking Chinese and other foreigners in the city-state after it was reported that a 52-year-old local cabbie had died of his injuries following Saturday's pre-dawn accident."

[AgentWhiskers]

What. The. Fuck.

[Pkm]

Sadly, no seatbelt is gonna save your ass from that kind of collision.

[TAJ]

"Allegedly" ran the red light? lol

[xbhaskarx]

Holy shit that video....

[smurfx]

holy crap the guy recording got lucky he didn't go just a little faster after the light turned green.

[Bombadil]

Goddamn. I wouldn't want to be the guy who had to approach the scene after that mess. If the driver of the Ferrari had survived he would have probably been executed.

[timetokill]

Holy hell

That was like the blink of an eye, insanity

[Hawkian]

I know I'm missing the lead..... but why did you put G/A/F in the title?

[DonMigs85]

Goddamn. I wouldn't want to be the guy who had to approach the scene after that mess. If the driver of the Ferrari had survived he would have probably been executed.

Yeah, he probably looks about as bad as Nikki Catsouras did.

[Dreams-Visions]

"Websites were swamped Monday with postings attacking Chinese and other foreigners in the city-state after it was reported that a 52-year-old local cabbie had died of his injuries following Saturday's pre-dawn accident."

ah.

and yea, it's neither G, A or F. so why is it in the thread title? new meta?

[hayejin]

Where in the article does it say the driver was drunk?

[shagg_187]

Where in the article does it say the driver was drunk?

"I hate to drag nationality into this tragedy but the stupidity of a single (Chinese) possibly drunkard driver has caused such catastrophic damage to so many people," Tan Wee Meng posted on Facebook.

Not a full-fledged "investigation" but whatever the case is, the idiot behind the wheel took someone's life and the video is more than enough to show the stupidity.

[antonz]

Thats the worst thing about accidents like these. Would be nice if assholes like the driver could find ways to kill themselves without killing others.

[Xisiqomelir]

Where in the article does it say the driver was drunk?

Ahh, this is where we vanish down the rabbit hole. Ma Chi was cremated without autopsy, which is bizarre given the outlandish circumstances of his death.

Read speculation about why here:

http://temasektimes.wordpress.com/20...at-high-speed/

and here:

http://sammyboy.com/showthread.php?1...-Job-12-of-May

[Slayer-33]

What a fucking hit god damn.

...

[MarkMclovin]

Aint watching that video. Fuck drunk drivers.

[Slayer-33]

Aint watching that video. Fuck drunk drivers.

Nothing graphic, just an insane fucking hit on the taxi... Incredible..

[Steelrain]

Goddamn!

Good riddance to that piece of crap. Shame he couldn't just crash into a wall when he was alone in the car driving that recklessly.

[Branduil]

that video. holy shit. edit: who was the 3rd casualty? I expected it to be the taxi driver, but the article doesn't mention the driver. just the passenger? edit 2: I like how they just kept right on driving like nothing was wrong...

They probably kept driving because of shock. The driver's nonchalant reaction makes it sound like he hadn't fully processed what just happened.

[Slayer-33]

The Ferrari driver probably dozed off for a split second being drunk like that and that's all it takes on such a machine or any car for that matter.. The power of that vehicle just compounds the problem..

[big_z]

i saw a similar accident where i live about a year ago but only the front end of the car got ripped off and everyone was okay. people are idiots for running red lights especially when it's been red for as long as in the video, it doesnt take long for the intersection to fill.

The Ferrari driver probably dozed off for a split second being drunk like that and that's all it takes on such a machine or any car for that matter.. The power of that vehicle just compounds the problem..

he probably was awake and figured his car is so fast it could bend time.

[shagg_187]

They probably kept driving because of shock. The driver's nonchalant reaction makes it sound like he hadn't fully processed what just happened.

Yep. You'd be surprised the human reaction time to something disastrous like that.

[Cloudius12]

My god...

[Slayer-33]

i saw a similar accident where i live about a year ago but only the front end of the car got ripped off and everyone was okay. people are idiots for running red lights especially when it's been red for as long as in the video, it doesnt take long for the intersection to fill. he probably was awake and figured his car is so fast it could bend time.

I still can't believe at how fast he slammed into that taxi..

[Zaptruder]

Wha... Lucky eh.

The nonchalant reaction cracks me up. Not that this is a laughing matter. But it happened so quickly that it was difficult to see the damage wrought from the pov of the driver in the other taxi that was missed.

[Defuser]

Apparently there are some 'sources' going around saying the dead driver of the Ferrari is the brother of a mafia boss.

edit: And he has a pregnant wife too but he is apparently driving around with a woman in provocative clothing.

[Timbuktu]

Is it a bit strange that a traffic incident has turned into an anti-immigration issue? i didn't quite realise the anti-PRC sentiment is as stong in Singapore as it is in HK.

[UFRA]

The Ferrari driver probably dozed off for a split second being drunk like that and that's all it takes on such a machine or any car for that matter.. The power of that vehicle just compounds the problem..

What do you mean?

I'm sure he was fully awake and intentionally going that fast.

At that speed, he had no chance to react fast enough to avoid the taxi. Drunk or sober.

[Enco]

So sad.

Fucking drunk drivers. Every one of them should be locked up.

[Lakitu]

Horrible, fucking wanker.

Is it me or does it sound like someone is laughing in that video? Probably just me.

[hteng]

the video shows it's 4am in the morning, and the lane was clearly green for the taxi driver for a good 4 secs, so if this is not a drunk driver, then he's too much of an idiot to not stop at a red light.

also the machine is designed to stop or rapid decelerate, in the video the car never even attempted to slow down, it's just a flash. The driver should have saw 2 big blue taxi cars in the middle of the road.

[Slayer-33]

What do you mean? I'm sure he was fully awake and intentionally going that fast. At that speed, he had no chance to react fast enough to avoid the taxi. Drunk or sober.

Just imagining that guy dozing off for a sec and the accelerator being pressed all the way down... But ya unlikely I guess.

I'm completely blaming him lol I'm not trying to excuse anything trust me

[UFRA]

the video shows it's 4am in the morning, and the lane was clearly green for the taxi driver for a good 4 secs, so if this is not a drunk driver, then he's too much of an idiot to not stop at a red light. also the machine is designed to stop or rapid decelerate, in the video the car never even attempted to slow down, it's just a flash. The driver should have saw 2 big blue taxi cars in the middle of the road.

It looks like there's some kind of traffic barrier in between the lanes. This could have obstructed the Ferrari's view of the cross traffic until it was too late.

I'm completely blaming him lol I'm not trying to excuse anything trust me

Oh I hear ya there lol. Just given the circumstances (really fast car, going really fast) I think it's more likely he was showing off the car's speed. To fall asleep, and then at the same time accelerate to high speeds while keeping the car going straight seems pretty unlikely IMO.

[FootballFan]

Woah..that vid.

[Defuser]

i didn't quite realise the anti-PRC sentiment is as stong in Singapore as it is in HK.

When housing prices increases, car prices increases, public trains breaking down more often due to a increase of peak morning rush, locals not being able to get a job of course they will be pissed about it.

A few months ago, fuel was added to fire by a PRC university student who label Singaporeans as dogs.

[Socreges]

Taxi driver must have been obliterated. Fuck.

[hteng]

It looks like there's some kind of traffic barrier in between the lanes. This could have obstructed the Ferrari's view of the cross traffic until it was too late. Oh I hear ya there lol. Just given the circumstances (really fast car, going really fast) I think it's more likely he was showing off the car's speed. To fall asleep, and then at the same time accelerate to high speeds while keeping the car going straight seems pretty unlikely IMO.

there shouldn't be obstruction to traffic lights, singapore has very strict regulation with regards to traffic, most of their traffic lights even have cameras to capture red light runners, and even if the light is obstructed, how the hell does someone not see 2 cars in the middle of an intersection?

I'm incline to believe the driver intended to run the redlight, there's no explanation whatsoever. I mean you have a yellow light and then red, then there's a 3 second pause before the opposite lane gets the green light, there was plenty of time to slow down or stop.

Just imagining that guy dozing off for a sec and the accelerator being pressed all the way down... But ya unlikely I guess. I'm completely blaming him lol I'm not trying to excuse anything trust me

i don't believe one bit he was dozing off, he had a passenger, he was probably distracted or just intend to woo his passenger.

[UFRA]

there shouldn't be obstruction to traffic lights, singapore has very strict regulation with regards to traffic, most of their traffic lights even have cameras to capture red light runners, and even if the light is obstructed, how the hell does someone not see 2 cars in the middle of an intersection? I'm incline to believe the driver intended to run the redlight, there's no explanation whatsoever. I mean you have a yellow light and then red, then there's a 3 second pause before the opposite lane gets the green light, there was plenty of time to slow down or stop. .

Drunk + Going very fast + Having mere second or two to avoid taxi = Runs red light, fails to react, hits taxi

And I'm not saying the obstruction is to the traffic lights, I'm saying it could have hid the cross traffic when it was still stopped at the intersection. Once they came into the intersection then the Ferrari had little time to react at the high speed.

I too agree, he was probably trying to show off to the passenger. If he was drunk, that only contributed to him being oblivious to the red light and cross traffic.

[speedpop]

When housing prices increases, car prices increases, public trains breaking down more often due to a increase of peak morning rush, locals not being able to get a job of course they will be pissed about it. A few months ago, fuel was added to fire by a PRC university student who label Singaporeans as dogs.

Yeah it's becoming a perfect storm for the PAP to swim against, and I'm sure there was already some sort of sentiment toward people from China because they were rude or whatever to the general populace. But the PAP are going to go down in flames and it's going to be glorious.

[dejay]

By the sound of the engine, the Ferrari was accelerating until the very last split second.

I'll wager the guy was so drunk he thought he could get to the intersection before the traffic on the green started rolling, despite his light being red for some time.