I have been watching Pinkdot since its inception and like many enjoyed the expression of human spirit in all its forms. I would also see some idiots like a certain new age church owner and beneficiary of donations from his captive flock repeatedly using Pinkdot to milk his gullible flock.
This year was a little different. The sponsors list caught my eye and it was an A list of World renown firms. And it looks it was not just my eyes. Seldom have I seen a consortium of this prominence and scale opening their purse strings for an event such as this. Support for the LGBT yes and we see it globally and it is part of being a responsible World Corporate Citizen. Google, Barclays, JP Morgan, Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs, BP and the list goes on.
I am sure everyone by now would be curious about the total amount in sponsorship that was collected.
And where exactly is the money going into. Singapore like any society has its own segment of vulnerable people who are disadvantaged, discriminated or no longer in a position to fend for themselves. Singapore in a way however is more open and in many ways do not discriminate those who are not heterosexuals. We are absolutely proud of our ladies from Bugis Street and they made us famous the World around. As a kid, I could swear they looked better than some of our womenfolk (now thats discrimination). Gays and lesbians were part of our school and work life. I do however admit the Bisexual identity did seem like a late entry in my conscience. We did not even tolerate them, we accepted them. And it was not even a conscious choice. When the West began raising LGBT as a cause, we actually thought they were less tolerant and guessed the hate was driven by religious zealots and nut jobs in their country.
We have had entertainment outlets that cater for various preferences for years and I cannot think of anything discriminatory except for Sec 377a and the usual minority of religious bigots.
The penny dropped when I saw Ivan Heng's Facebook comments on foreign sponsorship. It now appears that is indeed a cottage industry that depends on Pinkdot sponsors. It now appears that the ridiculous 377A law is actually a blessing in disguise for the LGBT community and has been milked for sometime. And quite dishonestly as well. I would certainly like to be proven wrong and this can be easily done by opening the books on expenses.
I have this funny feeling if the CEOs of the sponsoring companies were briefed on our country's practices, they would come to one conclusion - maybe their donations would better serve the ill and the poor, for food, for education of the young and for more meaningful and more urgent causes.
In the meantime, some out of there might be free to compile the latest hotspots the caters for each segment of the LGBT group. It will help me guide the next bunch of foreign visitors that I have to look after as my guide has not been updated for sometime.
The Prime Minister can also do his bloody part by getting rid of 377A for good.
This year was a little different. The sponsors list caught my eye and it was an A list of World renown firms. And it looks it was not just my eyes. Seldom have I seen a consortium of this prominence and scale opening their purse strings for an event such as this. Support for the LGBT yes and we see it globally and it is part of being a responsible World Corporate Citizen. Google, Barclays, JP Morgan, Bloomberg, Goldman Sachs, BP and the list goes on.
I am sure everyone by now would be curious about the total amount in sponsorship that was collected.
And where exactly is the money going into. Singapore like any society has its own segment of vulnerable people who are disadvantaged, discriminated or no longer in a position to fend for themselves. Singapore in a way however is more open and in many ways do not discriminate those who are not heterosexuals. We are absolutely proud of our ladies from Bugis Street and they made us famous the World around. As a kid, I could swear they looked better than some of our womenfolk (now thats discrimination). Gays and lesbians were part of our school and work life. I do however admit the Bisexual identity did seem like a late entry in my conscience. We did not even tolerate them, we accepted them. And it was not even a conscious choice. When the West began raising LGBT as a cause, we actually thought they were less tolerant and guessed the hate was driven by religious zealots and nut jobs in their country.
We have had entertainment outlets that cater for various preferences for years and I cannot think of anything discriminatory except for Sec 377a and the usual minority of religious bigots.
The penny dropped when I saw Ivan Heng's Facebook comments on foreign sponsorship. It now appears that is indeed a cottage industry that depends on Pinkdot sponsors. It now appears that the ridiculous 377A law is actually a blessing in disguise for the LGBT community and has been milked for sometime. And quite dishonestly as well. I would certainly like to be proven wrong and this can be easily done by opening the books on expenses.
I have this funny feeling if the CEOs of the sponsoring companies were briefed on our country's practices, they would come to one conclusion - maybe their donations would better serve the ill and the poor, for food, for education of the young and for more meaningful and more urgent causes.
In the meantime, some out of there might be free to compile the latest hotspots the caters for each segment of the LGBT group. It will help me guide the next bunch of foreign visitors that I have to look after as my guide has not been updated for sometime.
The Prime Minister can also do his bloody part by getting rid of 377A for good.
