Having just recently plugged a rather nice afternoon stroll, today brings reminders as to why such strolling is still needed as a minimum. The new bosses really are the same as the old bosses (but then they probably always were going to be, especially if you subscribe to the view that they’re just following orders from Brussels/hidden powers). The pub element of the walk could certainly become trickier
Via Big Brother watch a review of how the coalition and civil liberties, which doesn’t make happy reading. Nor in some ways does the dropping of charges against the love police as, as they observe, it just shows how happy the state is to arrest you with no intent to actually prosecute once they’ve mucked your life up a bit. I’m fairly sure that we shouldn’t be being policed via a catch and release scheme against which we have no recourse or appeal – though even that is better than being fined purely on accusation
Apart from the usual excuse of made up powers and a dislike for having their photograph taken the police still have the fall back of declaring that you were “using “insulting” words within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused “distress”?” Though to end on a cheerier note there are glimmers of hope across the pond. though if other events are anything to go by walking around in a mask probably makes us all “domestic extremists” – but with a bit of EU harmonisation the French burka ban will soon stop us. Perhaps with a European Investigation order which Theresa May recently signed us up to we could already be tried under French law? Or maybe handing carrying a rose will be enough?
So until there’s a culture change from top to bottom of the apparatus of the state, so that it no longer feels the need to be able to arrest and control people at whim there’s still a need to suggest that things should be different even if it is just be going for a small walk in an odd outfit. If enough people protest in a fashion they’re happy with then things can change. After all there have been no huge demo’s to repeal the smoking ban but that’s start to look a little shaky.
