21st century has been the time of “instant” everything. The instant we need to know an answer， there’s one right at hand on Wikipedia ™. The Instant Messaging app that works from your phone and lets you chat with people anywhere in the world makes us feel like they are just beside us， as if we can walk up to them and ask what happened or why our flight was delayed today……or anything else… And now even Google Maps will tell you how long it should take you to get somewhere so you can plan ahead and arrive when planned……
The point is， Singapore Immigration has a lot less discretion than the United States（which might be a good thing but I have seen many examples where an American Consulate denied my entry into the U.S. based on their own subjective criteria）. In fact， the Singapore Ministry of Home Affairs website lists all possible questions immigration officers can ask you about travel history， financial status of visitors etc——in advance for everyone's peace of mind！
I am not familiar with any other country's rules/regulation on this matter， but I think visa processing times are getting shorter in general these days， thanks to technological advances and more streamlined procedures...
