"If you cannot convince them, confuse them." - Harry S Truman

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I surfed on to the MDA website to try to find out what the "Not Recommended" classification decision for films means: "Not Recommended" films are not Banned, but neither are they Passed (with cuts or otherwise) or Exempted (for those who don't know, you can check whether films in Singapore are Banned, Cut or Passed Clean using the Film Classification Database; this can be very useful if you're looking for gay artistic films; you must click the arrow though - pressing enter won't work, bizzarely).

I searched their site but find nothing. So I went to "1001 Questions: Frequently asked questions answered".

On the Top 10 Questions list, many important questions are answered, but the Top question of them all is:

"Is accessing pornography on the Internet illegal?

The MDA does not monitor or track users' access to any sites on the Internet and does not interfere with what individuals access in the privacy of their homes. We are primarily concerned with the purveyors and distributors of pornography. Unless you engage in such activities, the mere act of visiting such sites is not an offence."


Points to ponder: Is seeding a torrent considered distribution? Is uploading in the course of downloading a torrent considered distribution? (This law is updated for the late 20th century, but it needs to be updated for the early 21st century)

Someone: users posting torrent links included as distributors or not

However, further digging reveals that their schizophrenic and incoherent policy has not changed. Under the "Public Education - Students" section:

"Would I be arrested if I accidentally enter a pornographic website?

No, as there is no restriction on the websites you can visit. However, do note that it is an offence to download and store pornographic materials."

I'd heard about this, but I thought they'd updated their policy. Apparently they haven't. Yes, yes y'all, we don't stop. Get connected worldwide, rock on!

Oddly enough, this same bit is not included under the "Internet Policy" FAQ.

Also, another hilarious one (from the Students section):

"I found a friend reading a pornographic magazine. What should I do?

Talk to your friend and tell him that pornography gives a wrong impression of sex and often demeans people. It could have a psychologically disturbing and addictive impact on any person. If need be, ask him to have a talk with his parents or school counsellor. It is advisable that he destroys the magazine as it is an offence to possess it."

Maybe they think it's okay for adults to do the same, since their psychological makeups are robust enough to withstand the corruption. A pity they aren't considered strong enough to watch Banned films like "1993 SWIMSUIT VIDEO, THE: SPORTS ILLUSTRATED", "BETTER THAN CHOCOLATE", "SALO' O LE 120 GIORNATE DI SODOMA" (The 120 Days of Sodom), "WITCHCRAFT XI: SISTERS IN BLOOD", "LOVES OF A FRENCH PUSSYCAT" and "LIFE OF BRIAN" (Yes, Monty Python's Life of Brian is BANNED in Singapore. Excellent.)