Great to see Winston up and about and yelling at the clouds again, but this insane interpretation of the Terrorism Suppression Act and his desire to send the military in to Opotiki is so deeply flawed, I’m not sure where to begin.
Firstly, the great and brilliant Graeme Edgeler (who was my lawyer in my fight against the NZ Police) points out why legally this is insane…
…he is of course right.
To qualify as a Terrorist organisation and unleash all the enormous military power of the State that goes along with that, you have to actually have an ideological, religious, political purpose.
Simply being criminal doesn’t trigger the extraordinary powers of the State.
What happened in Opotiki is a policing issue and a societal issue, letting the State off the leash to declare effective martial law so the paramilitary police can start shooting people is not a fucking solution, it is an inane provocation.
We need less Police State flexing and more actual thinking to ensure our reaction doesn’t make things worse.
Oh and as for the Alt Rights current favourite thinking mans crumpet, Thomas Cranmer…
…yeah.
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What is clear is the current strategy towards gangs isn’t working and in fact making things worse as evidenced by an explosion in gang numbers, gang-related crime and drug use (distributed by the gangs). We now have the Comancheros (the worst of the much) converting whole chapters of rival gangs. What we saw in Opotiki was the complete cuckolding of the NZ Police. What other first world country closes a state highway for a gang funeral procession. There is none – not even in Sicily.
Let’s not get tied up in knots around defining a terrorist organisation – what the gangs do is terrorise and intimidate the rest of NZ while (in the main) engaging in criminal activity. Designate a new category – Domestic Terrorist and begin dismantling these gangs with a new legal framework as they hide behind the protections of our current legal framework.
It’s either that or give up and accept lawlessness.
It is a shame that the law does not make us safe from being terrorised.
The police needs to step up to the plate.
Law and order is about respecting the rights of others and cannot function without respect for law enforcement.
Hmmmm… since when have the NZ Police respected the people of NZ???????
They are dishonest, unintelligent power wielding goons who have more in common with the Tonton Macoute than a disciplined, effective law enforcement agency.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tonton_Macoute
That’s is more or less what I said!
But you are saying all police is like that.
There are many honest, motivated, intelligent, caring policemen and women.
Therefore, you are wrong and thinking like that makes one part of the problem and not part of the solution.
Real Johan?, and you only watch TV on Sundays,
but you missed the viewing of the police in action at Patrliament.
Shona is right about the Police, we none of us with a clear view
trust them and we sees what there is toi see.
The point is how do we change this perception and:
How does law enforcement reconnect with society and gain trust?
Gangs in New Zealand have intimidated the political left to the extent they are permitted to operate outside the law,which in fact means law and order under a Labour Government has broken down.
I am not anti gangs per se but I’m definitely not comfortable with lawlessness.
I am against gangs that prey on the vulnerable and intimidate society.
Martyn if crim rights take priority over the rights of law-abiding citizens, then we no longer have rule of law in NZ.
Let that sink in.
Are they actually criminals? I know they are in your head, and yes they are a bunch of thugs. That doesn’t actually mean they have been convicted of a crime.
So, people who steal, take advantage of the vulnerable and intimidate only become undesirable once they are convicted.
but we’re ok with NZ mercenaries/terrorists fight in the ukraine….pshaw to the moral high ground
Totally agree with you Bomber.
We need Winston to get to 5% to get a handle on ACT if the Nats get in. So Winston needs to stop acting like he has Alzheimers and get with the program or NZF will never get across the line! As a Lawyer he knows full well this is ludicrous and is playing politics in the worse way.
Hadnt noticed that Thomas Cranmer is Alt Right, obviously notice that he’s fairly conservative and I imagine a Nats voter but I hadnt thought of him as Alt Right until you raised it.
Thinking back, he has written a fair bit on the vaccinations issue.
Why I think people like him is that he does do some good research on his columns and raises some pertinent issues especially around issues like the details within 3 Waters and the new RMA, Ministerial impropriety etc. He doesnt generally spout ideology but gives a fairly well thought out argument supporting his views. He is great at digging through contracts, cabinet manuals etc etc and finding the flaws in what the Government is doing.