Friday, July 23, 2004
A foundational law takes a king hit
A High Court judge has made a ruling that has huge implications for the future of the rule of law in New Zealand. Justice Paterson has ruled that the writ of Habeas Corpus does not apply to people detained under NZ's new terrorism laws. This means that people suspected of terrorism can be detained indefinitely without being charged or brought to trial.
Habeas Corpus is one of the oldest foundations of English law. It was brought in through the Magna Carta in 1215, and is the thing that really sets English law apart from the laws of other European countries. Undermining it is one of the first steps that any dictator takes.
Suspending any foundational law of this kind is an outrage. If a person is thought to be guilty of terrorism, it should be justice in anyone's book that they be charged and brought before the court - not locked up at the State's whim and pleasure.
What gives it even an even more sinister twist is that the law also takes any person acting against the economic interests of the State. If you or I are somehow deemed, for instance, to have harmed New Zealand's lamb exports to Tunisia, we could be arrested and thrown in jail, without the State ever having to prove a case against us.
A High Court judge has made a ruling that has huge implications for the future of the rule of law in New Zealand. Justice Paterson has ruled that the writ of Habeas Corpus does not apply to people detained under NZ's new terrorism laws. This means that people suspected of terrorism can be detained indefinitely without being charged or brought to trial.
Habeas Corpus is one of the oldest foundations of English law. It was brought in through the Magna Carta in 1215, and is the thing that really sets English law apart from the laws of other European countries. Undermining it is one of the first steps that any dictator takes.
Suspending any foundational law of this kind is an outrage. If a person is thought to be guilty of terrorism, it should be justice in anyone's book that they be charged and brought before the court - not locked up at the State's whim and pleasure.
What gives it even an even more sinister twist is that the law also takes any person acting against the economic interests of the State. If you or I are somehow deemed, for instance, to have harmed New Zealand's lamb exports to Tunisia, we could be arrested and thrown in jail, without the State ever having to prove a case against us.
Thursday, July 22, 2004
Ruling on embryos clears the way for 'designer babies'
The UK fertility watchdog yesterday gave the go-ahead for parents to create "designer babies" who can act as genetically-matched donors for their sick siblings.
In a controversial policy change, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) decided to relax the rules governing the screening of embryos before they are implanted in the womb.
Experts predict that around 20 couples a year may now use the procedure to create "donor siblings". But anti-abortion groups warned the policy change could lead to babies being created as "spare parts" rather than as human beings in their own right.
Over the last three years, several applications to the HFEA have been made by couples who want to use pre-genetic diagnosis (PGD) screening to help them select embryos which will be a genetic match and donor for existing children suffering from life-threatening diseases and whose only hope is a stem cell transplant.
The UK fertility watchdog yesterday gave the go-ahead for parents to create "designer babies" who can act as genetically-matched donors for their sick siblings.
In a controversial policy change, the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) decided to relax the rules governing the screening of embryos before they are implanted in the womb.
Experts predict that around 20 couples a year may now use the procedure to create "donor siblings". But anti-abortion groups warned the policy change could lead to babies being created as "spare parts" rather than as human beings in their own right.
Over the last three years, several applications to the HFEA have been made by couples who want to use pre-genetic diagnosis (PGD) screening to help them select embryos which will be a genetic match and donor for existing children suffering from life-threatening diseases and whose only hope is a stem cell transplant.
We never really loved each other
Cindy Wilson and her husband should never have married each other. He was abusive - she was a doormat. She married him out of guilt, and deep depression set in on her honeymoon. From there it was all downhill.
Normally, they would have been headed straight for the divorce courts. What happened instead is a remarkable story of determination and hard work.
No-fault divorce has wreaked havoc in most western countries. Cindy's story shows we don't have to go down that road.
Cindy Wilson and her husband should never have married each other. He was abusive - she was a doormat. She married him out of guilt, and deep depression set in on her honeymoon. From there it was all downhill.
Normally, they would have been headed straight for the divorce courts. What happened instead is a remarkable story of determination and hard work.
No-fault divorce has wreaked havoc in most western countries. Cindy's story shows we don't have to go down that road.
Wednesday, July 21, 2004
It really is getting warmer, folks
NIWA, the Crown Research Institute responsible for studying New Zealand's climate has plotted air temperatures back to 1853. The 150 years of source material appear to support claims our climate has been warming up. There has been a very consistent rise over this time. NIWA observes the biggest changes have been in winter temperatures, which have risen from –0.74 degrees below the long-term average to +0.84. That's a change of more than 1.5 °C, which in climate terms is very significant.
(Reported by Molesworth and Featherston - if you visit their page, you can see a very convincing graph of the change.)
NIWA, the Crown Research Institute responsible for studying New Zealand's climate has plotted air temperatures back to 1853. The 150 years of source material appear to support claims our climate has been warming up. There has been a very consistent rise over this time. NIWA observes the biggest changes have been in winter temperatures, which have risen from –0.74 degrees below the long-term average to +0.84. That's a change of more than 1.5 °C, which in climate terms is very significant.
(Reported by Molesworth and Featherston - if you visit their page, you can see a very convincing graph of the change.)
Tuesday, July 20, 2004
Prostitution legal in San Francisco?
While local councils in New Zealand battle through the complexities of how to deal with prostitution now that it has been legalised by the government, it appears that legalised prostitution has quietly been slipped into San Francisco. WorldNetDaily reports today that outgoing Mayor Willie Brown signed a new law on December 5 that redefines it as a public health issue rather than a matter of law enforcement. He just didn't bother to tell anybody about it. The law went into effect July 1.
By removing a requirement that applicants submit to fingerprinting and provide photo IDs, the measure opens the door to include most anyone in the massage industry, including convicted pedophiles and rapists, asserts Brian Goodwin, a massage therapist in San Rafael, Calif., near San Francisco.
"Basically, San Francisco's new massage law is the only massage law in the world written specifically for the benefit of criminals, to help criminals to commit crimes, especially those crimes related to sex-slave trafficking, prostitution, rape, pedophilia, etc.," Goodwin says.
Up to now, Nevada has been the only US state where prostitution was legal.
While local councils in New Zealand battle through the complexities of how to deal with prostitution now that it has been legalised by the government, it appears that legalised prostitution has quietly been slipped into San Francisco. WorldNetDaily reports today that outgoing Mayor Willie Brown signed a new law on December 5 that redefines it as a public health issue rather than a matter of law enforcement. He just didn't bother to tell anybody about it. The law went into effect July 1.
By removing a requirement that applicants submit to fingerprinting and provide photo IDs, the measure opens the door to include most anyone in the massage industry, including convicted pedophiles and rapists, asserts Brian Goodwin, a massage therapist in San Rafael, Calif., near San Francisco.
"Basically, San Francisco's new massage law is the only massage law in the world written specifically for the benefit of criminals, to help criminals to commit crimes, especially those crimes related to sex-slave trafficking, prostitution, rape, pedophilia, etc.," Goodwin says.
Up to now, Nevada has been the only US state where prostitution was legal.
