whats with this reddit-tier hyperbole? These comments are seriously out of touch, it comes off as trolling.
They charge people coming into their country if they have weed in their system (or their law allows them to and it seems they enforce it enough that countries warn their citizens), breaking no law in their country, and quite likely adhering to the law in their country of origin.
They make suicide illegal and PUNISH peoples attempts at it.
You don't think those two points alone (without even bothing to list additional obscene laws) are INSANE? Do you really want to defend them?
Singaporean law forbids their citizens and residents from using drugs in other countries. So if a Singapore resident goes to Amsterdam or Portland and smokes a joint there, they are complying with local laws but still breaking Singaporean laws. Laws with this sort of extraterritorial jurisdiction aren't without precedent. Particularly, other countries, like the US, UK and many others, have similar laws concerning some forms of sex tourism.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Extraterritorial_jurisdiction
> Just because it might be a very pleasant place to live doesn't mean it isn't also totalitarian.
With that I agree, but I think a better word to describe Singapore is 'authoritarian.' Totalitarianism is an extreme form of authoritarianism, in which the government exercises a near total control over every aspect of your life. Singapore regulates many aspects of their citizens lives, as do all functional governments to at least some degree, but I think it falls short of totalitarianism.
The problem is with that law being applied to non-residents. If Singapore wants to police it's citizens lik that, it's fine.
But to arrest a Canadian because they smoked weed a couple of days before arriving at Singpore customs, where it's legal in Montreal where they were?
> With that I agree, but I think a better word to describe Singapore is 'authoritarian.'
Another user pointed that out and I agree entirely. I exaggerated/resorted to hyperbole more than intended.
Re sucide: you should probably fact check that, because the criminality of suicide was recently repealed in Singapore.
But even if it wasnt, I find your stance hyperbolic considering lots of countries still criminalize suicide. Places in the U.S. considered suicide criminal all the way up to the 90s.
I'm not dictating, I'm disaproving.
Sovereign nations can indeed have whatever laws they want, and I don't have to go there but I can continue to speak out against bad and unjust laws as I see it.
> I find your stance hyperbolic considering lots of countries still criminalize suicide.
If that's true, that's ignorance on my part.
Don't go to Singapore if you like drugs. How hard can that be? I've been not going to Singapore my entire life.
That's not a bad analogy, except many countries won't let you in if you have a felony on your record. That isn't that unusual.
Singapore is going to arrest people for breaking no rule in their home country, and not for breaking any rules within the country, but simply for showing up at the door because you smoked weed before the 21 hour flight?
I mean, you're right I won't go because I think it's a crappy country, but that doesn't mean I still can't disprove I want to work towards a world where no country has shitty laws like that..
Suicide rate doesn't measure anything except suicide rate. The happiness index and other studies are very thorough in what they measure, and choose things common to all cultures.
Bizarre to be defending a totalitarian regime because you have no crime. I guess you really think the means justify the ends, maybe because you don't realize the level of compromise.