Freaky photo flingers face fat fines for flagrant phallus flashing fun A little wood could soon get you the cane (or at least some time behind bars), thanks to a recently-passed law in Singapore that criminalizes sending unwelcome nude photos. After what was no doubt a long and hard deliberation the Southeast Asian city-state this week passed a series of legal reforms regarding sex crimes and …
NO. not a good idea. SHOULD NEVER HAPPEN: criminalizing speech/freedom.
It's one of the things that's gone HORRIBLY WRONG with even a "benevolent" dictatorship (like Singapore).
In Singapore, these things are illegal:
a) chewing gum
b) carrying a pocket knife of any size
c) feeding pigeons
d) public singing of 'naughty songs'
e) not flushing the toilet
f) walking around naked in your own home
g) same-sex relationships https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Singapore
And a bunch of other things, most likely. Its "nanny state" policies are well documented.
"unwanted pron" can be deemed as 'harassment' and that's always illegal [this would require that you prove you were being harassed, regardless of how]. One thing that is NOT needed is "yet another nanny law" that criminalizes any form of porn. I would guess that people sometimes exchange this sort of thing thinking the other person MIGHT want to see it, and if the other person says "do not send me this ever again" and you do NOT, there's no JAIL involved, just irritation and need to apologize.
That would be NORMAL human relationships [excluding harassment, already mentioned]
But THIS would CRIMINALIZE someone saying "I did not want that", and now you do jail?
There's something to be said about gummints NOT being in every aspect of people's lives, ya know?
b) carrying a pocket knife of any size
Looking at knife crimes in London and other cities I don't think this is a bad law. Also, Singapore is all city, it's not exactly the wild outback where you need a leatherman to survive
c) feeding pigeons
If you had been here during bird flue epidemic you would know why
d) public singing of 'naughty songs'
I've never know it to be enforced, plenty of it happening in the central bar district, and around geylang if you include hokkien songs
e) not flushing the toilet
Never heard of this one, but considering the constant high temperature and number of immigrants that may not be familiar with a toilet, I wouldn't say that's a bad law
f) walking around naked in your own home
Are you aware of how close the apartments are in sg? Mate of mine can see his neighbours going to the toilet in glorious bushy detail.
g) same-sex relationships https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LGBT_rights_in_Singapore
This one annoys me and many others, but as far as I'm aware it's never been enforced on 2 consenting adults.
Singapore makes no claims to be democratic or free. And yet it manages to be reasonably prosperous and happy (ranks 34th in the World Happiness Report - that's below the US or UK, but above, e.g. Spain, Italy or Japan).
Population density makes a difference. If 5.6 million people are going to live in 721 km2 without public health hazards arising, that's a very different matter from containing them in the comparatively-wide-open spaces of Newark or Chicago.
thinking the other person MIGHT want to see it, and if the other person says "do not send me this ever again" and you do NOT, there's no JAIL involved, just irritation and need to apologize.
So if I whack you painfully around the head with a baseball bat, and you tell me that you didn't want me to do that, it's OK if I apologise, and I won't be charged with assault?
-> thinking the other person MIGHT want to see it, and if the other person says "do not send me this ever again" and you do NOT, there's no JAIL involved, just irritation and need to apologize.
"So if I whack you painfully around the head with a baseball bat, and you tell me that you didn't want me to do that, it's OK if I apologise, and I won't be charged with assault?"
It also sounds like a flasher's charter "Didn't you want to see that? Sorry - I won't do it again".
I don't understand how people defend "speech/freedom" so much. Censorship and Law is just tools to make our society better. Good or bad depends on how it is used. Censoring citizens pointing out flaws in the government's administration is bad. Censoring anti-vaxx propaganda is good. Who will decide if this is good or bad? The people, that's why democracy is good. I don't mind censorship as long as it is used democratically. Of course, Singapore is not democratic but since they are so small they have to listen to the people.
"
Who will decide if this is good or bad? The people, that's why democracy is good.
"
Since when have "the people" voted for a single law (or abolition thereof)? All too often an exceptional and usually emotive case has been used to gain public support for a new far-reaching law that is then used for something entirely different. There were 3,506 NEW laws passed in the UK in 2010 alone (that's nearly 14 new laws every day) - how many did you even know about, let alone had a say in?
Most laws are made primarily to serve and protect the government, not the citizen.
criminalizing speech/freedom
What - you mean like Alabama just has in trying to make abortion illegal even in the case of rape? Surely, women have freedom to control their own bodies and can't be forced by the state to bear an unwanted child?
And yes, the two things are linked.
And, before you witter on about the sanctity of lfe - how many of its own citizens does the US kill every year? Often without due process..
For voyeurism offenses, the government says miscreants could face not only jail time, but also fines and a caning.
Well, let's be honest, SG will be one of the 1st countries/ cities then where Airbnb participants won't have hidden cameras in the rooms (as in ElReg recently). Unless they like a bit of caning of course...
The Register 
Biting the hand that feeds IT
Copyright. All rights reserved © 1998–2024
