The Price of Freedom
Phillip Pullman, the children's author, has written a superb article here in today's Times called "Malevolent voices that despise our freedoms"
I rarely find myself in agreement with Mr Pullman, but the warnings he gives about how we are sleep-walking into the surrender of our liberties are well worth listening to.
Pullman writes that
"It is inconceivable to me that a waking nation in the full consciousness of its freedom would have allowed its government to pass such laws as the Protection from Harassment Act (1997), the Crime and Disorder Act (1998), the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (2000), the Terrorism Act (2000), the Criminal Justice and Police Act (2001), the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act (2001), the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Extension Act (2002), the Criminal Justice Act (2003), the Extradition Act (2003), the Anti-Social Behaviour Act (2003), the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act (2004), the Civil Contingencies Act (2004), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (2005), the Inquiries Act (2005), the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act (2005), not to mention a host of pending legislation such as the Identity Cards Bill, the Coroners and Justice Bill, and the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill."
I might not entirely agree with every item on that list if they were all taken individually, but taken together he is surely right. There is a difficult balance to strike between freedom and security, but Labour has lost sight of that balance. The laws listed above by Phillip Pullman have tilted it much too far away from freedom.
Think I'm exaggerating? How else can you describe a situation
* where a woman can be arrested by standing at the cenotaph and reading out the names of British service personnel killed in Iraq?
* When an MP can be arrested for doing his job?
* When the government keeps records of the DNA of people who have been wrongly accused of crimes?
* And when the British government hands prisoners over to the government of an ally so they can be taken to a third country where they can be treated in ways which neither our laws nor the constitution of our ally permit?
If, God forbid, this country were foolish enough to elect Nick Griffin and enough BNP candidates to form a government, we would find out the hard way just how badly our freedoms have been eroded. We may not have a dictatorship yet, but the legal powers which would permit a rogue government to impose a ghastly tyranny have been put in place.
Ben Franklin once wrote that "The Price of Liberty is eternal vigilance" and Chris Roberts, author of the "Wing Commander" series of cames put it even better when he put into the mouth of the villain of one of the games
"The Price of Freedom is eternal vigilance."
And from Franklin through to David Davies, the wisest defenders of free and independent nations have realised that the biggest danger to a country's freedom is often those in power who think they are defending it.
Philip Pullman will deliver a keynote speech at the Convention on Modern Liberty at the Institute of Education in London tomorrow.
Perhaps the most chilling part of his article is a poem which he puts into the mouths of the authors of the new legislation:
"We know who our friends are
And when our friends want to have words with one of you
We shall make it easy for them to take you away to a country where you will learn that you have more fingernails than you need
It will be no use bleating that you know of no offence you have committed under British law
It is for us to know what your offence is
Angering our friends is an offence."
I rarely find myself in agreement with Mr Pullman, but the warnings he gives about how we are sleep-walking into the surrender of our liberties are well worth listening to.
Pullman writes that
"It is inconceivable to me that a waking nation in the full consciousness of its freedom would have allowed its government to pass such laws as the Protection from Harassment Act (1997), the Crime and Disorder Act (1998), the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act (2000), the Terrorism Act (2000), the Criminal Justice and Police Act (2001), the Anti-Terrorism, Crime and Security Act (2001), the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Extension Act (2002), the Criminal Justice Act (2003), the Extradition Act (2003), the Anti-Social Behaviour Act (2003), the Domestic Violence, Crime and Victims Act (2004), the Civil Contingencies Act (2004), the Prevention of Terrorism Act (2005), the Inquiries Act (2005), the Serious Organised Crime and Police Act (2005), not to mention a host of pending legislation such as the Identity Cards Bill, the Coroners and Justice Bill, and the Legislative and Regulatory Reform Bill."
I might not entirely agree with every item on that list if they were all taken individually, but taken together he is surely right. There is a difficult balance to strike between freedom and security, but Labour has lost sight of that balance. The laws listed above by Phillip Pullman have tilted it much too far away from freedom.
Think I'm exaggerating? How else can you describe a situation
* where a woman can be arrested by standing at the cenotaph and reading out the names of British service personnel killed in Iraq?
* When an MP can be arrested for doing his job?
* When the government keeps records of the DNA of people who have been wrongly accused of crimes?
* And when the British government hands prisoners over to the government of an ally so they can be taken to a third country where they can be treated in ways which neither our laws nor the constitution of our ally permit?
If, God forbid, this country were foolish enough to elect Nick Griffin and enough BNP candidates to form a government, we would find out the hard way just how badly our freedoms have been eroded. We may not have a dictatorship yet, but the legal powers which would permit a rogue government to impose a ghastly tyranny have been put in place.
Ben Franklin once wrote that "The Price of Liberty is eternal vigilance" and Chris Roberts, author of the "Wing Commander" series of cames put it even better when he put into the mouth of the villain of one of the games
"The Price of Freedom is eternal vigilance."
And from Franklin through to David Davies, the wisest defenders of free and independent nations have realised that the biggest danger to a country's freedom is often those in power who think they are defending it.
Philip Pullman will deliver a keynote speech at the Convention on Modern Liberty at the Institute of Education in London tomorrow.
Perhaps the most chilling part of his article is a poem which he puts into the mouths of the authors of the new legislation:
"We know who our friends are
And when our friends want to have words with one of you
We shall make it easy for them to take you away to a country where you will learn that you have more fingernails than you need
It will be no use bleating that you know of no offence you have committed under British law
It is for us to know what your offence is
Angering our friends is an offence."
Comments
As you know, I consider that the developer was wrong to put buildings at Whitehaven Golf course in a different location to that where permission had been granted, and that Copeland's planning department did not handle the issue as well as they should have.
I said as much to the officers and raised the issue at council meetings. That isn't hiding.
Anyway it is Cumbria County Council that revoked our rights not Copeland BC. Whilst Copeland BC refused to take enforcement action against Whitehaven Golf Club's illegal actions, it was Cumbria County Council legal department that compounded the problem by undemocratically revoking our rights to use the public highway.
What have you and the Conservative party done about this? it was a Conservative controlled Council that started this nonsense of revoking the Publics rights because of the unlawful actions of the Golf Club.
At the time there was a Con/Lib Dem coalition cabinet, but no party has a majority on the committee which made the decision.
Chris, our rights, the rights of everyone in Britain, have been revoked by Cumbria County Council legal department. This has been purely for the benefit of Whitehaven Golf Club and the golfing mafia, all these dodgy deals used to be done at the freemasons now it's the golf clubs.
Where are any of you politicians standing up to protect our rights?
It was not well handled and I have accepted that all along.