service with honour

i've been thinking about the people who work in the civil/public service here in Singapore. The teachers, doctors, lawyers, etc -- so many of whom, if they're doing good work, and with sufficient experience, could so easily move into the private sector and earn shitloads more money doing the same, or perhaps even less, work than they do in the government service. And yet some choose to stay.
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Talk to these people, and what usually emerges is a passionate sense of mission. They've very consciously chosen to do what they do because they believe in the value of their work, and they often have very clear ideas of what exactly they're trying to accomplish in their areas of influence.
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i'm grateful for these people, for their sense of service. They help slow down the inevitable widening of the class/income divide here. It's nice to know there are such people here in this country.
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