The future of Singapore's LGBT community

Even though male gay sex remains criminalised in Singapore due to the retention of Section 377A of the Penal Code, there is much to be optimistic about regarding the eventual attainment of 100% LGBT equality in the island republic.

The relentless progress of LGBT rights and the legalisation of same-sex marriage in the developed countries and also in some developing ones like South Africa, coupled with the resolution by the United Nations to support LGBT equality in all its member nations cannot but exert an influence on the Singapore government to raise local human rights standards to meet international norms.

Technological advancements, like the universal penetration of the Internet which has helped the LGBT community immensely in the past to mobilise and strategise, robotics, nanobiology, artifical intelligence and virtual reality will disrupt current oppressive paradigms and forge novel environments where discrimination against LGBT people will be antiquated.

=Law of accelerating returns=

An analysis of the history of technology shows that technological change is exponential, contrary to the common-sense “intuitive linear” view. Therefore, we will not experience 100 years of progress in the 21st century — it will be more like 20,000 years of progress (at today’s rate). The “returns,” such as chip speed and cost-effectiveness, also increase exponentially. There is even exponential growth in the rate of exponential growth. Within a few decades, machine intelligence will surpass human intelligence, leading to The Singularity — technological change so rapid and profound it represents a rupture in the fabric of human history. The implications include the merger of biological and nonbiological intelligence, immortal software-based humans, and ultra-high levels of intelligence that expand outward in the universe at the speed of light.

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=Acknowledgements=

This article was written by Roy Tan.