Few nations in history have shown the remarkeable progress that Singapore has achieved over the past 40 years. In such a short period of time, the city-state of Singapore has gone from swamp land to one of the wealthiest nations in the world, making Lee Kuan Yew perhaps the most brilliant politican that has ever lived. By implementing the correct policies from the start, the example of Singapore has shown that free markets and stable politics are the most powerful forces in raising the standard of living for every human on the planet.
While the answers to religious questions may always be a shade of gray - simple, unequivocal answers to the great political questions exists. Lee Kuan Yew knew these answers very well and the greatness of his empire is starting to be copied in other areas of the world. Over the next few centuries, the world may witness an evolution so far unknown throughout history - the rise of the city-state.
The Singaporean model is a phenomenal case study in how to run a country. With income tax rates no higher than 20% for even the highest earners, the people of Singapore are highly incentivized towards entrepreneurship. They have a mandatory savings rate of 30%, and no capital gains tax exists. The incentive to save and invest as opposed to consume has given their people some of the strongest balance sheets in the world. Law and order are highly valued, with violent crime rates a mere 1/10th of the comparable rates in most major US cities. How has this happened? By being relentless in its pursuit for safety and having a zero tolerance level for crime. Just recently a drug smuggler from Australia was executed for carrying a few kilos of cocaine into the country. While the Singapore government was criticized for its actions, they sent a message to the rest of the world that they will not tolerate such actions. Few drug smugglers dare to test these laws for fear of the repurcussions. The governments' main focus, besides law enforcement, has been to invest in the potential of science. Scientific researchers, including computer scientists and biomedical engineers have been flocking to Singapore for its great opportunities and desire to become a leader in the future of technology. Recently, some instituions in the country have partnered with the most powerful medical schools in the world, including Johns Hopkins and Harvard University.
Using Singapore as a model, Dubai has introduced economic reforms that have catapulted this city-state into one of the most promising on the planet. While the perception is that the nation would be bankrupt without oil, the reality is that oil accounts for just a few percentage points of Dubai's GDP. With no income or capital gains taxes, individuals are free to pursue any business ideas that they desire, without governmental interference. Taking another idea from Singapore and expanding upon it, Dubai has recently announced the health care free zone, the only truly free market health care system in the world. Doctors of all kinds can perform their occupations without suggestions or demands from beaucratic agencies and insurance companies.
As these two examples grow and continue to prosper, it is likely we will see other city-states emerge with similar economic success. Hong Kong, the prototypical city-state, initially showed that sound policies can help a country prosper even when surrounded by large communist areas. Today, many Carribean countries, especially the Bahamas and the Cayman Islands have become wealthy via many of the same ideas. Perhaps the arrival of smaller, economically successful countries will eventually become the norm, setting the stage for a historical revolution away from the great behomeths of the Greek, Mogul, or Ottoman Empires of the past and towards the Singapores and Dubais of the future.
