Thursday, November 25, 2004
The rule of law is being further eroded
New Zealand law is heading into ever more dangerous territory.
The Ahmed Zaoui case has shown that a person can be held in custody indefinitely without being charged with a crime. This is reinforced through the Identity (Citizenship and Travel Documents) Bill, which allows the government to do the same thing to any New Zealander.
Now Justice Minister Phil Goff is proposing that the government be allowed to seize the assets of any person suspected of benefiting from criminal activity.
A Court can order confiscation if it is satisfied the Crown has proven on the balance of probabilities that the person derived some benefit from criminal activity in the previous seven years. No specific criminal offence need be proved.
As "No Right Turn" comments, there are very good examples from overseas why we should avoid going down this road.
New Zealand law is heading into ever more dangerous territory.
The Ahmed Zaoui case has shown that a person can be held in custody indefinitely without being charged with a crime. This is reinforced through the Identity (Citizenship and Travel Documents) Bill, which allows the government to do the same thing to any New Zealander.
Now Justice Minister Phil Goff is proposing that the government be allowed to seize the assets of any person suspected of benefiting from criminal activity.
A Court can order confiscation if it is satisfied the Crown has proven on the balance of probabilities that the person derived some benefit from criminal activity in the previous seven years. No specific criminal offence need be proved.
As "No Right Turn" comments, there are very good examples from overseas why we should avoid going down this road.
Latest from the education lunacy file
I am not making this up! The NCEA Level 1 Health & Physical Education examination paper contained the following question: "Explain how cooking affects your spirituality."
I am not making this up! The NCEA Level 1 Health & Physical Education examination paper contained the following question: "Explain how cooking affects your spirituality."
Wednesday, November 24, 2004
Of abstinence, Alzheimers and aloneness
Here’s a selection of items from the latest issue of Family Edge:
Abstinence-only textbooks for Texas schools: Sex education dealing with contraception has taken a knock-back in Texas where the State Board of Education has voted that school textbooks should teach only abstinence. The books should also be explicit about marriage as a union between a man and a woman, in line with Texas laws which preclude gay "marriage" or civil unions.
Elderly man with Alzheimer's abandoned by wife: An 82-year-old man suffering from Alzheimer's disease was abandoned by his wife in the accident and emergency waiting room of a hospital in Essex, England, while she returned to Spain where the couple had lived for two years. The case has highlighted a growing problem of elderly British expatriates living in Spain who fall ill, die or are widowed. However, they can get help by signing their names on to the register of local residents at their nearest town hall.
Men in the city - no home to go to: Social trends - particularly big city living - are causing men to miss out on home life - to the detriment of their mental and physical health, according to reports from Britain and Japan. Researchers at Edinburgh University found there were twice as many men as women living on their own in the 25-44 age group. Fear of the commitment of marriage, and demanding careers are among the possible reasons. Also, men are more able to afford single living, but women tend to prefer flatting. Family breakdown also leaves men alone since women are most likely to keep the children. And a first-ever nationwide survey in Japan found 25,296 homeless people, 6000 of them in Tokyo. Most are middle-aged or older men, many of whom are former day labourers in the construction industry, which has been badly hit by recession. Activists representing the homeless say there is a more basic problem of "ageism" in Japan. Those over 35 have trouble finding a job in Japan - especially if they are unmarried.
Women seek thrills instead of marriage: New research from Wales says that women are shunning marriage and families in favour of adventure. The new breed of women, dubbed "contrasexuals", will only be fulfilled when they have achieved something "incredible through their own efforts". Apparently, as many as a quarter of all working women in Wales could be called contrasexuals. This fits with other Welsh research indicating that half of working women who do not already have children are not interested in having them. Andrew Boddie, head of marketing at Standard Life Bank, said financial freedom was behind the rise of the new breed - women "who own houses in which they have built up equity. They understand the financial power that it gives them to change the way they live."
Female depression: Nearly a third of young women are depressed, according to data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. A sample of 9333 Australian women aged 22-27 indicated they were experiencing depressive symptoms. These correlated with low income, low educational qualifications, a history of unemployment, not being in a relationship, and living arrangements other than living with a partner. Illicit drug use, more smoking and drinking, and less exercise were also more common among these young women.
Abortion linked to later anxiety: Women who abort unintended pregnancies are more likely to develop anxiety, a United States study has found. Researchers examined a representative sample of 10,874 women aged 15-34 who had experienced an unintended first pregnancy and had no prior history of anxiety. Researchers found that compared to women who carried the unintended pregnancy to term, women who aborted were 30 per cent more likely to subsequently report all the symptoms associated with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD).
Brits compromise on smacking: British MPs have voted overwhelmingly for compromise legislation on smacking. The defence of "reasonable chastisement" has been removed from the law but parents may still administer a "mild" smack.
Thickburgers: American fast-food chain Hardee's has defied the anti-obesity drive with a Monster Thickburger which it shamelessly describes as a "monument to decadence". The burger consists of two slabs of Angus beef (664 calories) and four rashers of bacon (150 calories) with three slices of processed cheese (186 calories), plus mayo (160 calories), sandwiched between a sesame seed bun (230 calories) spread with butter for a final 30. It is a "heart attack in a bun" say nutritionists.
Here’s a selection of items from the latest issue of Family Edge:
Abstinence-only textbooks for Texas schools: Sex education dealing with contraception has taken a knock-back in Texas where the State Board of Education has voted that school textbooks should teach only abstinence. The books should also be explicit about marriage as a union between a man and a woman, in line with Texas laws which preclude gay "marriage" or civil unions.
Elderly man with Alzheimer's abandoned by wife: An 82-year-old man suffering from Alzheimer's disease was abandoned by his wife in the accident and emergency waiting room of a hospital in Essex, England, while she returned to Spain where the couple had lived for two years. The case has highlighted a growing problem of elderly British expatriates living in Spain who fall ill, die or are widowed. However, they can get help by signing their names on to the register of local residents at their nearest town hall.
Men in the city - no home to go to: Social trends - particularly big city living - are causing men to miss out on home life - to the detriment of their mental and physical health, according to reports from Britain and Japan. Researchers at Edinburgh University found there were twice as many men as women living on their own in the 25-44 age group. Fear of the commitment of marriage, and demanding careers are among the possible reasons. Also, men are more able to afford single living, but women tend to prefer flatting. Family breakdown also leaves men alone since women are most likely to keep the children. And a first-ever nationwide survey in Japan found 25,296 homeless people, 6000 of them in Tokyo. Most are middle-aged or older men, many of whom are former day labourers in the construction industry, which has been badly hit by recession. Activists representing the homeless say there is a more basic problem of "ageism" in Japan. Those over 35 have trouble finding a job in Japan - especially if they are unmarried.
Women seek thrills instead of marriage: New research from Wales says that women are shunning marriage and families in favour of adventure. The new breed of women, dubbed "contrasexuals", will only be fulfilled when they have achieved something "incredible through their own efforts". Apparently, as many as a quarter of all working women in Wales could be called contrasexuals. This fits with other Welsh research indicating that half of working women who do not already have children are not interested in having them. Andrew Boddie, head of marketing at Standard Life Bank, said financial freedom was behind the rise of the new breed - women "who own houses in which they have built up equity. They understand the financial power that it gives them to change the way they live."
Female depression: Nearly a third of young women are depressed, according to data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health. A sample of 9333 Australian women aged 22-27 indicated they were experiencing depressive symptoms. These correlated with low income, low educational qualifications, a history of unemployment, not being in a relationship, and living arrangements other than living with a partner. Illicit drug use, more smoking and drinking, and less exercise were also more common among these young women.
Abortion linked to later anxiety: Women who abort unintended pregnancies are more likely to develop anxiety, a United States study has found. Researchers examined a representative sample of 10,874 women aged 15-34 who had experienced an unintended first pregnancy and had no prior history of anxiety. Researchers found that compared to women who carried the unintended pregnancy to term, women who aborted were 30 per cent more likely to subsequently report all the symptoms associated with generalised anxiety disorder (GAD).
Brits compromise on smacking: British MPs have voted overwhelmingly for compromise legislation on smacking. The defence of "reasonable chastisement" has been removed from the law but parents may still administer a "mild" smack.
Thickburgers: American fast-food chain Hardee's has defied the anti-obesity drive with a Monster Thickburger which it shamelessly describes as a "monument to decadence". The burger consists of two slabs of Angus beef (664 calories) and four rashers of bacon (150 calories) with three slices of processed cheese (186 calories), plus mayo (160 calories), sandwiched between a sesame seed bun (230 calories) spread with butter for a final 30. It is a "heart attack in a bun" say nutritionists.
Street Saints
Below the radar screen of diarists and bloggers, often consumed with the “big picture”, ordinary people go about their lives, often doing very extraordinary things. Barbara J. Elliott (and the “J” tells you, of course, that she’s American) has spent the last eight years interviewing people whose lives are marked by their service to others. She’s met everyday heroes who understand that helping to lift the burdens of our fellow citizens are some of life's highest callings, and that the love, care and targeted help individuals provide those in need is far better, more effective, and more humane than any government program.
The result of 300 interviews are contained in Street Saints: Renewing America’s Cities, and it’s recommended reading for anyone in need of proof of the decency and kindness of ordinary people. The cover description sums it up:
“Street Saints takes you through the streets of America's cities to meet people of faith who are renewing America, one heart at a time. These unsung heroes are putting an arm around abused grade-schoolers and teaching them to read, facing down drug dealers, and giving bullet-pocked neighborhoods hope. They are working creatively as social entrepreneurs, turning gang members into computer programmers, and equipping former drug addicts with job and life skills. They are touching the least, the last, and the lost with love. And they are discovering that the transformation is mutual. This unlikely army of compassion includes reformed crackheads and con men, soccer moms, grade school dropouts and PhDs, former prostitutes and business executives, preachers and ex-gang bangers. Regardless of whether they are black, white, Latino or Asian, Baptist, Catholic, Pentecostal or Presbyterian, street saints are discovering their convictions transcend their denominational, racial, and political boundaries. What they all share is a commitment to renew the soul of our nation.”
Below the radar screen of diarists and bloggers, often consumed with the “big picture”, ordinary people go about their lives, often doing very extraordinary things. Barbara J. Elliott (and the “J” tells you, of course, that she’s American) has spent the last eight years interviewing people whose lives are marked by their service to others. She’s met everyday heroes who understand that helping to lift the burdens of our fellow citizens are some of life's highest callings, and that the love, care and targeted help individuals provide those in need is far better, more effective, and more humane than any government program.
The result of 300 interviews are contained in Street Saints: Renewing America’s Cities, and it’s recommended reading for anyone in need of proof of the decency and kindness of ordinary people. The cover description sums it up:
“Street Saints takes you through the streets of America's cities to meet people of faith who are renewing America, one heart at a time. These unsung heroes are putting an arm around abused grade-schoolers and teaching them to read, facing down drug dealers, and giving bullet-pocked neighborhoods hope. They are working creatively as social entrepreneurs, turning gang members into computer programmers, and equipping former drug addicts with job and life skills. They are touching the least, the last, and the lost with love. And they are discovering that the transformation is mutual. This unlikely army of compassion includes reformed crackheads and con men, soccer moms, grade school dropouts and PhDs, former prostitutes and business executives, preachers and ex-gang bangers. Regardless of whether they are black, white, Latino or Asian, Baptist, Catholic, Pentecostal or Presbyterian, street saints are discovering their convictions transcend their denominational, racial, and political boundaries. What they all share is a commitment to renew the soul of our nation.”
Tuesday, November 23, 2004
Next it's polygamy
The Civil Union Bill is not even passed in New Zealand, but already we have a strong indication of what it’s going to lead to. In a major article at USA Today, a well-known American scholar, Jonathan Turley, presents a forceful case for the legalisation of polygamy.
Turley, Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington Law School, is one of America's foremost constitutional specialists, whose face became familiar to most Americans through media coverage of the Clinton sex scandals and the former president's impeachment trial.
As Turley sees it, laws against polygamy run counter to the logic of the US constitution and lack credibility in today's context of sexual revolution. “Individuals have a recognized constitutional right to engage in any form of consensual sexual relationship with any number of partners," Turley argues. "Thus, a person can live with multiple partners and even sire children from different partners so long as they do not marry. However, when that same person accepts a legal commitment for those partners 'as a spouse,' we jail them."
As Albert Mohler comments, the professor's logic makes sense -- if we accept his premise that citizens have "a recognized constitutional right" to engage in any form of consensual sex with any number of partners, without respect to gender. As he sees it, criminalizing polygamy is nothing more than a form of national hypocrisy. Since no existing laws criminalize the sexual behaviour, the criminalization is directed only at those who would solemnize their sexual relationships by claiming the institution of marriage. As Turley and polygamists see it, "it is simply a matter of unequal treatment under the law."
The Civil Union Bill is not even passed in New Zealand, but already we have a strong indication of what it’s going to lead to. In a major article at USA Today, a well-known American scholar, Jonathan Turley, presents a forceful case for the legalisation of polygamy.
Turley, Shapiro Professor of Public Interest Law at George Washington Law School, is one of America's foremost constitutional specialists, whose face became familiar to most Americans through media coverage of the Clinton sex scandals and the former president's impeachment trial.
As Turley sees it, laws against polygamy run counter to the logic of the US constitution and lack credibility in today's context of sexual revolution. “Individuals have a recognized constitutional right to engage in any form of consensual sexual relationship with any number of partners," Turley argues. "Thus, a person can live with multiple partners and even sire children from different partners so long as they do not marry. However, when that same person accepts a legal commitment for those partners 'as a spouse,' we jail them."
As Albert Mohler comments, the professor's logic makes sense -- if we accept his premise that citizens have "a recognized constitutional right" to engage in any form of consensual sex with any number of partners, without respect to gender. As he sees it, criminalizing polygamy is nothing more than a form of national hypocrisy. Since no existing laws criminalize the sexual behaviour, the criminalization is directed only at those who would solemnize their sexual relationships by claiming the institution of marriage. As Turley and polygamists see it, "it is simply a matter of unequal treatment under the law."
Monday, November 22, 2004
Attempt to legalise euthanasia in Britain
Christian medical practitioners have urged Christians "in the strongest possible terms" to express their "disapproval and anger" at new laws that will allow "Dutch-style" euthanasia in Britain. The Christian Medical Fellowship believes that the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill will "threaten the trust necessary" for doctor-patient relationships, "place pressure on patients to request early death, and introduce a slippery slope leading to voluntary and involuntary euthanasia". The Bill, which aims to legalise assisted suicide for competent adult patients who are dying and "suffering interminably", is opposed by the British Medical Association, the General Medical Council and the Royal College of Nursing. However, the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of General Practitioners have decided not to oppose the proposals.
Christian medical practitioners have urged Christians "in the strongest possible terms" to express their "disapproval and anger" at new laws that will allow "Dutch-style" euthanasia in Britain. The Christian Medical Fellowship believes that the Assisted Dying for the Terminally Ill Bill will "threaten the trust necessary" for doctor-patient relationships, "place pressure on patients to request early death, and introduce a slippery slope leading to voluntary and involuntary euthanasia". The Bill, which aims to legalise assisted suicide for competent adult patients who are dying and "suffering interminably", is opposed by the British Medical Association, the General Medical Council and the Royal College of Nursing. However, the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of General Practitioners have decided not to oppose the proposals.
