In many Western countries, laws prohibiting anal sex between men (or even men with women) have been repealed, primarily because there is no legal basis for enforcing a religiously-slanted ruling on what is essentially consensual sex between two consenting adults in the privacy of their homes, and also because it is practically impossible to apply such Taliban-style laws against honest, law-abiding citizens in secular countries.
Unfortunately, Singapore, as an ex-British colony, still clings on to the vestiges of her colonial past: We inherited British law wholesale, and the anti-gay law which the old Elizabethan British laws enshrined (apparently the Brits no longer have such silly laws which require police to pry into the privacy of citizens' homes) are still held in high esteem by the Singapore courts.
Section 377A
Section 377A ("Outrages on decency") states that:
"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."
Unfortunately, an online appeal to repeal this obsolete law failed to materialize, primarily because there was another counter-campaign, dominated mainly by Christians, to support this dinosaur from the colonial age. To understand the rationale behind such unabashed support for what is essentially a law based on discrimination and bigotry, the best way is to read into what these Christians really have to say. And boy, is it shocking.
Allow me to introduce a Singaporean Christian, Daniel: He introduces himself as a "reformed Christian". According to Daniel's take on homosexuals, gays, it seems, are sinister plotters out to destroy the moral fabric of society, and they are apt to seize upon the gullible impressions of ordinary folks to morph us all into homosexuals. Sounds horrifying, but, like all things Christian, this is primarily a religiously-manufactured manure, as I shall attempt to debunk.
Below are some points which I would like to elucidate: Be warned, this is heinous stuff. My comments in black, Daniel in red.
Homosexual Bigots???
1. "We don't Hate Gays, We Just Hate the Gayness!!!"
"Let's put it this way. Homosexuals are not the problem. They are still humans and deserve to be treated as such. They are not second-class citizens to be ill-treated as a scapegoat, or to be used as anyone's punching bag. What we are against is homosexualITY, and the bigoted homosexual agenda. Bashing homosexuals for fun is wrong, although the homosexual activists sure do enjoy bashing us. But we are not to stoop to their depraved standard. Even if we can 'get away with it', anyone who bashes gays for sport is wrong. Homosexuals are to be treated with compassion, in the same manner as we should treat mentally ill people. They are to be pitied and helped to get out of their depraved state."
First and foremost, Daniel "enlightens" us with regards to his stance: He claims that he doesn't hate gays per se, but he hates the "gayness" of these gays. And like most homophobic idiots, he proceeds with the condescending tone of a master, as if he is talking to his inferior: Gays, to him and his fellow homophobs, are "mentally-ill", a subject of pity and derision.
Of course, the more enlightened folks amongst us will realize that general psychiatry no longer regards homosexuality with mental illness.
According to American Psychological Association:
"Since 1975, the American Psychological Association has called on psychologists to take the lead in removing the stigma of mental illness that has long been associated with lesbian, gay, and bisexual orientations. "
Psychology, indeed, has moved on since the pre-Alan Turing years, when the ill-fated scientist was hounded and persecuted to the point when he had no other choice other than biting on a cyanide-laced apple. It would be ludicrous, of course, for our Christian brethren to be enamored with the lives of gays: What is one dead gay compared to the deaths of fertilized embryos???
2. The Gay Conspiracy???
"Homosexual activists of course are a different issue altogether. These people are the ones who create more homosexuals out of impressionable young minds, and who glory in their shame. These people are to be treated as criminals, in fact worse than criminals, for leading people astray. In the same way as those who brainwash people to commit suicide bombings are to be punished more severely than those who acually attempt to do so (since those who successfully did so are dead by then), homosexual activists are to be punished most severely for their wicked acts. Justice must be meted out against the perpetuators of this outrage. Since they are already sold out to the extent of desiring to corrupt others (Rom. 1:32), they are not to be treated with kids' gloves, otherwise we are telling others that it is ok to do the same thing. Yet, at the same time, we are to offer them a choice to repent of their sins, and forgiveness IF they sincerely do so."
Ah, the gay conspiracy theory. Like most conspiracy theories, such as the one on 911 being perpetuated by the White House, irrational people seize upon certain non-sequitor traits and piece together a fuzzy picture, and then proceed to sell their bullshit to the masses.
According to Daniel, gay advocates are miscreants with a hidden agenda: The real deal, it seems, is to convert everyone's sexual habits into a gay-oriented taste.
As a straight person, and one who has had numerous encounters and discussions with gays, one thing I have gleaned from them is this golden axiom: Straight people are no more liable to change their sexual orientations than gays.
While there is considerable debate with regards to the real reasons behind one's sexual tastes (Scientists have more or less determined that genes do have a considerable impact, while religious folks disagree), the unbridled truth is that most guys will be enamored with female breasts and others will become fixated with the prick of some male hunk next door. The idea that gays will plan and execute a gay agenda based on conversion is preposterous and childish: Such a campaign will face a head-long collision before it even takes off.
Like the anti-slavery campaigners that has preceded gay campaigners, gay advocates are not looking at enforcing a gay lifestyle on the general community. All they are asking for is to be treated equally, not to be treated like some slum-ghetto jerk or a lower caste of human beings destined to be trampled upon when it comes to living a normal, citizen's life. Homosexuals ask for the right to be treated fairly, the right to civil practices such as marriages, and the end of bigotry and intolerance towards gays. How is that for shoving "gayness" down the throats of every other boy, girl or child???
But Daniel doesn't stop here. He advocates that "justice be meted out against gay advocates". I wonder, if he is seriously clamoring for the death penalty to be meted out against these fornicating advocators! Or better still, whip their asses to a bloody pulp (I feel ashamed to say that our legal courts permit caning for certain crimes. It is kind of like the most medieval punishment you can ever imagine......)!!!
3. "Persecution Mode"
Like most Christian campaigns I have witnessed over the years, when Christians face opposition because of their support for outmoded, archaic, medieval beliefs, they will retreat into their shells, "persecution mode": It invokes sympathy for their religious cause, regardless whether their cause is legitimate and rational in the first place.
With regards to the gay issue, Daniel, like most right-wing nuts, follows this modus operandi, and executes it to perfection: Instead of being the bigoted and intolerant bastard, he suddenly morphs himself and those of his cause into docile, pliable (and perfectly delectable and tasty) sheep!!!!
"As for the pagan West, we would probably soon see the active persecution of faithful Christians in these once Christianized nations. Dr. James R. White has written a very good article whereby he shows this to be the case, and exhort us to prepare ourselves for it. Because we are Christ's, we will be hated by the world, and the world will persecute us (well, at least those who are faithful). In fact, shouldn't we have learned already that 'all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted' (2 Tim. 3:12)? While we still have the liberty to do so, let us therefore do the works of God, before we will be hunted down by the 'tolerant' and 'loving' secularists out there in their secular Inquisition."
Standard operating procedure from a very typical Christian. Lest one forgets, the original Inquisitions was inspired by the very guys who are accusing us secularists of plotting. Not very original, eh?
I always react with as much incredulity and skepticism as possible when Christians claim to be "persecuted" at every turn: With the exception of the Middle East, which prohibits apostasy from Islam and hence prohibits any Muslim from converting into Christianity, Christianity is pretty much revered, in fact I would add, given too much undue relevance to the point of grovelling. Pastors and their churches and "ministries" are given more financial shroud than secular businesses, since they don't pay taxes, and laws are in place in most secular countries that guarantees the right to freedom of speech and with it, the freedom to belief.
In fact, these Christians are given so much room and freedom that they are allowed to bash gays and other folks who are not aligned with their beliefs and not invoking the kind of vitriol that is incurred when a cartoonist draws a caricature of Muhammad with a bomb in his turban. What kind of a persecution picture are these folks painting exactly?
Gay Bashing, a-la Christian Style
It is quite painfully obvious to enlightened folks that Christians love to drum up massive support with the predictable aplomb one would expect when they do not have reason and apathy on their side. They utilize their special privileges in media, government and other political outlets to propagate their profound hatred and gift-wrap it in Christianity's clout so that it all seems so sanctified and pious.
But alas, we secular folks know that religious piety is bullshit, and when it is invoked to illicit public sympathy for an obnoxious cause, the bullshit can be detected from miles away.
Unfortunately, most Singaporeans are of the conservative variety, and they do buy into this "gays are evil" propaganda incited by religious folks like Daniel. Unless my countrymen can start waking up and smell the coffee I think we as a nation are no more than third world citizens living in a hollow first world country.
Gays and Lesbians: Just Your Ordinary Joe and Jane Next Door
"Gay and lesbian people fall in love. We settle down. We commit our lives to one another. We raise our children. We protect them. We try to be good citizens."
-California Sen. Sheila Kuehl
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