If you can't get 4 on Demand, I'm sure it's easy to rent on DVD. It breaks down, in an amusing, skilful and utterly frightening way how the government has eroded civil liberties put into place after the lessons learned from World War II and the rise of the Nazis (and others going back as far as the Magna Carta, such as Habeas Corpus.)
*new!* Detention without trial
*new!* Extradition Treaty to the USA*
*new!* Torture
Bravo, Tony Blair. You dismantled our civil liberties in a mere 10 years. What a legacy, you must be proud.
It is funny, and the graphics used to tell the history behind these rights are beautifully done, plus it stars people we like, like Tony Benn, Brian Haws and Rachel North. It's also very, very, depressing. What a scary, cowed, fascist police state we're becoming.
But it also gives you hope, when you see how polite, charming, eccentric, seemingly powerless but purely bloody-minded, bolshy and stubborn are the people who are protesting against this erosion of our liberties...
Let us join them! I'm already thinking about what my Mass Lone Demonstration is going to be.
PS Must stop swearing on my blog. I can't access it from work, it's blocked by our filters as it's classified as "Occult/Profanity".
*The treaty removes the requirement on the US to provide evidence when requesting the extradition of people from the UK.
Taken from here
9 comments:
This is already angrying up my blood and I haven't even watched the programme yet. The one potential ray of sunshine could be a change of administration in the States. One would hope that what's likely to be an Obama Whitehouse could repeal a lot of the lunacy that's taken place under Bush.
The political situation over here is just to depressing for words. Maybe a touchy feely compassionate Conservative Cameron government will give us our liberties back. Breath. Not. Held. Sigh. The next government is almost certainly going to be Tory though, so we can only pray that the "Labour" party sorts it shit out in the intervening 4 years. Sigh.
But yes, you're right, we must do something. Can we organise a mass lone demonstration?
And have you seen this?!
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7410885.stm
What the bloody hell is going on?! Hnnnnggg. MIND YOUR OWN F___ING BUSINESS! F___ING NANNY STATE! F___ OFF!
Oops. Sorry. I'll bleep the swearing.
Deep cleansing breath.
I was just coming in to alert you to the same story as Del just posted.
You just know that the councils would use that kind of database to spy on anyone and everyone, like Poole council did with those people who'd wangled their child into some school or other. (Oddly, it's people just like that family who are normally pro-surveillance, on the grounds that they have 'nothing to hide').
Also don't forget ASBOs, which can effectively criminalise any kind of behaviour you care to mention.
Christ, it's a sorry state we're living in if we're looking to the Tories to restore our civil liberties.
Finally: I wouldn't be surprised if some way down the line commercial ISPs are banned and the government takes over all internet service provision...
A mass lone demonstration is a great idea, Del.
I saw that story on the Guardian site - unbelievable, isn't it? And they have such a great track record with keeping confidential date secure, don't they?
I know Patroclus - Ken Clarke and Borish were also in the film, and came across quite sane and reasonable compared with New Labour.
Maybe there would still be rogue, pirate ISPs, like the rebels in Star Wars...
Anne, you deleted your comment, but you're right, this film made me go straight to the Liberty
website...
There is also talk this week of 'sin bins' for unruly five year olds. What?!
Oh, sorry - I deleted the comment because when I checked the link it looked wrong, and couldn't get it to work. Glad you have posted the link anyway.
Anne
PS And what about this "Scientology is a cult" kid, eh?
Anne, good lord, I hadn't seen that story before. How absolutely pathetic. Is the church so weak that a kid waving a banner will affect it in any way?
And RoMo, in my present state of mind I daren't look at the story you're referring to in case my head explodes.
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