US YouTube vlogger pokes fun at the '7 insane laws of Singapore' in viral video
It seems like foreigners, including this YouTube vlogger, are still poking fun at our chewing gum ban and ridiculous fines.
Seriously, Singaporeans have long gotten over not being able to chew gum.
But looks like it is still big news for some people in other parts of the world.
A popular US YouTuber has listed what he calls “7 Insane Laws of Singapore”, citing all his details from -- not his ownresearch -- Wikipedia.
The blogger, known as Toby Turner, poked fun at how Singaporeans can get penalised for “chewing gum”, “being gay”, "not flushing the toilet”, “spitting”, “being naked in your own house”, urinating in public lifts and taking drugs in the country.
“Wow, one country’s legal drug is another country’s mandatory death sentence,” said Turner in the three-minute video.
“That’s why the crime rate is so low, because they kill everybody off!” he added.
While some of what he said can be true, it's not hard to notice that the video is laden with exaggerations too.
For instance, nobody in Singapore talks about being deprived of chewing gum anymore, so it’s no longer a big deal.
Also, the police won’t arrest you because you've confessed to the world that you’re gay. The law only applies when: “Any male person who, in public or private, commits, or abets the commission of, or procures or attempts to procure the commission by any male person of, any act of gross indecency with another male person, shall be punished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to 2 years.” This was taken from section 377A of the penal code -- it means that simply being homosexual does not land you in jail.
With regard to urinating in public lifts, yes they sound ridiculous. But it’s even more ridiculous to note that such people actually exist in Singapore.
Toby Turner is not the only one who has expressed exaggerated views of Singapore.
Recently, The Mothership highlighted a piece by The Guardian, where the writer had written sensational and inaccurate claims about living in Singapore based on responses from just three interviewees.
“He [the journalist] stayed in Singapore (likely at the Raffles Hotel) for three days and criticised S’pore using the most superficial arguments,” the writer said.
However, not all foreigners think of Singapore the same way Turner does.
The writer behind the blog “Limpeh is Foreign Talent” presented varied views from seven foreigners, mainly Europeans, to find out what they think of Singapore. While not all their views are positive, at least they are not highly exaggerated.
“It feels like a bit of a pressure cooker as well - people work so hard there, long hours in the office, it is fiercely competitive, kids there are under pressure to perform well at school and it's just so different from in Europe where people are just a lot more laid back about things like that, you know?” said an Irish male respondent.
