Hard News: Free Man
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"...One thing that bothers me about the Herald commentators more generally is their inability to distinguish between the Parliament, the Government, and the Labour Party..."
It always astonishes me that people who are unable to grasp such simple concepts as the separation of government or how MMP actually works seem able to white whole essays explaining the (to me, cos I very very seldom gamble) complexities of lotto.
Actually I never regarded lotto as complex, I've looked at the odds and thats I need to know about it. -
Anyway, talking abour scary bigots a go-go, Russell, glad to see therespectable face of brown-neck immigrant-bashing is dead.
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Their apparent reliance on google and whatever foreign intelligence services choose to tell them deepened my suspicions that the SIS is basically an incompetent organisation in lockstep with people who I don't really like alot, and they use secrecy mainly as a screen for their incompetence.
I am tempted to agree wholeheartedly, but I assume this forum could be googled in the future!
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Now I have to disagree - I am so utterly sick of being told a franchise of a multi-national corporation (the IRB) represents us and I owe it my loyalty I would happily burn ten thousand All Black flags.
Oh God, will I get arrested and locked up for saying that?
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Anyway, talking abour scary bigots a go-go, Russell, glad to see therespectable face of brown-neck immigrant-bashing is dead.
Cheers, Craig. Disrespectful as it is, that's totally brightened my day.
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I am so utterly sick of being told a franchise of a multi-national corporation (the IRB) represents us and I owe it my loyalty I would happily burn ten thousand All Black flags.
Michael, can I come to your burning party? I'll bring the marshmallows and weenies.
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Oh God, will I get arrested and locked up for saying that?
Only if the SIS has branched out into enforcing rugby fandom.
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Only if the SIS has branched out into enforcing rugby fandom.
That was the Red Squad's job, wasn't it?
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I'd imagine Mrs Zaoui and the kids would be the last thing on Ahmeds mind actually Russell...not sure exactly what lefty bloomers hitting the deck sounds like but I'm betting there will be a few despite what the Koran says...I can't believe how naive you are!
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I'd imagine Mrs Zaoui and the kids would be the last thing on Ahmeds mind actually Russell...not sure exactly what lefty bloomers hitting the deck sounds like but I'm betting there will be a few despite what the Koran says...I can't believe how naive you are!
I know I shouldn't bite but WTF?
Don't you have anything interesting or intelligent to add? -
WH,
I understand your discomfort with it, but the right to burn the flag has been upheld by a New Zealand court as a matter of free expression under the Bill of Rights Act 1990.
The case you are referring to is Hopkinson v R, and it remains controversial. You might also like to look at s.11 of the Flags, Emblems and Names Protection 1981, being the statute that s.4 or s.5 of our Bill of Rights was apparently unable to save.
Whether it is illegal or not, its strange to think that people died under our flag so that thoughtless losers could burn it.
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I think Deborah's actuially pretty mousey actually...Ahmed's no fool he'll move on
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<quote>I'd imagine Mrs Zaoui and the kids would be the last thing on Ahmeds mind actually Russell...not sure exactly what lefty bloomers hitting the deck sounds like but I'm betting there will be a few despite what the Koran says...I can't believe how naive you are!<quote>
Could it be that Muslims do not hold similar values and don't miss their families in the same way that we in the West do? Interesting thought. It would never have occurred to me.
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Richie you are a moron, also I thought my spelling was bad.....
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Dag,
I'd totally let Ahmed come over for a cup of tea, but if he burnt the serviettes then asked to stay because he had no place else to go, I'd say no. Get out of my house right now..
Worst analogy ever??? not yet, let me finish... After grilling him for four years (airlines were overbooked, no one would accept an extra passenger), I'm sure we'd find common ground. So I'd help him move in next door, just to keep an eye on him. Better than back with OBL, Bush, Ritchie Mcgrath and all the other crazies. -
The case you are referring to is Hopkinson v R, and it remains controversial.
Only to people who know nothing about the BORA or politically refuse to accept it. I found it quite clear: the BORA affirms freedom of expression, the law must be interpreted in a manner consistent with that freedom, and therefore the relevant clause of the Flags, Emblems and Names Protection 1981 was read down in order to comply. And that is exactly how the BORA is supposed to work.
It's no more controversial than Ngati Apa v Attorney General. but I suppose people who know nothign about the law will beg to differ on that one as well.
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The notion that "people died under our flag" has been given some consideration in the Australian context.
Most Australians to have fought under/died under a flag did so under either the Union flag or the old Australian red ensign.
The relevant Wikipedia entry has this to say:
Claims that Australians have "fought and died under the flag" are spurious, given that during most of the wars Australians have been involved in, they have usually "fought under" various British flags or the Australian Red Ensign, as well as the current Blue Ensign design. In any case, flags are not literally carried into battle in modern warfare. It remains unclear how changing a flag's design in any way affects the actions or status of Australia's war veterans.
Haven't been able to find much on the NZ situation, although it appears NZ soldiers in the Boer War wore the Silver Fern (the current NZ flag not being officially adopted until 1902).
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I am tempted to agree wholeheartedly, but I assume this forum could be googled in the future!
Back when Muldoon was Prime Minister everyone claimed to have an SIS file. It was sort of fashionable.
FWIW, I've only met two people who worked for the SIS. They obviously didn't say much about their work, but they were both hellishly bright.
It does seem things went a little haywire with the whole War on Terror thing, but I think Tucker has emerged quite well from his big week. Hopefully he is making some improvements.
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Monty ive been drinking for 20 hours and yes my spelling is affected...nighty nite
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FWIW, I've only met two people who worked for the SIS. They obviously didn't say much about their work, but they were both hellishly bright.
There was a time when people claimed to read Penthouse for the articles they published. Maybe some of them were telling the truth.
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Well, I do like being called Monty so I might quit the name calling and head off into the weekend. Yay.
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Cheers, Craig. Disrespectful as it is, that's totally brightened my day.
Well, I don't want to come across as someone who'd piss in an open grave but it amazes me that Whakahuihui Vercoe could always get a pass for talking smack about women, gays and immigrants (at least, the slitty-eyed yellow ones) from people who would be having a stroke if it came out of the mouth of Winston Peters or Bishop Brian Tamiki.
I'm looking forward to the liberally whitewashed obits...
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Ah. Gordon Campbell has much more detail on Anwar Haddam:
In reality, Anwar Haddam has never hidden the fact that he, Mohammed Said and Abderezzak Redjam were the three FIS leaders who had sought to build a bridge between the FIS and the more militant GIA during the 1993-95 period.
Said and Redjam paid for this attempt with their lives. Nothing that Zaoui could say now in 2007 about Haddam could possibly help the CIA. Any conversation in 2007 about Haddam between Zaoui and the SIS would almost certainly have been related to the SIS’ own misguided attempt to link Zaoui to Haddam, Said and Redjam as extremists, in order to bolster their case.
Such a tutorial for the SIS was all part of teaching them the basic facts of recent Algerian political history, which they have been chronically inept at understanding. End of story. Zaoui is not, and has never been an extremist or a CIA informer. What was news to the dum-dums at the SIS in 2007 about the Said/Redjam affair, would hardly be of value to the CIA today, which has rather more pressing things on its mind.
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I once met a chap who had worked for GCHQ in the UK. When I pulled his leg about the bumbling image of spies in recent times, he looked at me archly and said: "__That's what we want you to think.__"
Mmm.
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WH,
Only to people who know nothing about the BORA or politically refuse to accept it.
The case is controversial because the interpretation of s.11 used by the Court was plainly wrong, and the Court had to stretch s.4 of the BoR to breaking point to achieve the result that it did. If you want a lesson on why your view is incorrect, you could buy a copy of my book on the subject.*
Whats really not cool though is describing your own political preferences as rights norms and then telling everyone else they aren't as rights compliant as you are. :)
* i haven't really written a book on the subject. Well mostly not, anyway.
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