Hooray! John Reid will save us.... part deux

[mcquiggd]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk_politics/5257518.stm

Terror 'may force freedom curbs'

John Reid is calling for more public vigilance

Britain might have to modify its freedoms in the short term in order to prevent their "misuse and abuse" by terrorists, John Reid has said.

He conceded that was never an easy request, but it was up to everyone to ask "what price our security, at what cost can we preserve our freedoms".

The UK faced its "most sustained period of severe threat since the end of World War II", the home secretary warned.


And he is managing all this - without even a period of consultation.

What a guy.

[AtW]

3000 people die on roads every year in the UK and nobody bans cars, it seems to me that freedom is not always free and if the price of free society is 1-2% of extra deaths of those who die on roads alone (many more other deaths happen) anyway then its pretty reasonable.

[threaded]

I believe that liberty is the only genuinely valuable thing that men have invented, at least in the field of government, in a thousand years. I believe that it is better to be free than to be not free, even when the former is dangerous and the latter safe. I believe that the finest qualities of man can flourish only in free air – that progress made under the shadow of the policeman's club is false progress, and of no permanent value. I believe that any man who takes the liberty of another into his keeping is bound to become a tyrant, and that any man who yields up his liberty, in however slight the measure, is bound to become a slave.

[Diestl]

He's paving the way for ID cards by the sounds of it.

[Lucifer Box]

Christ, I agree with both AtW and Threaded. In the same thread. Must be going soft.

[stackpole]

Christ, I agree with both AtW and Threaded. In the same thread. Must be going soft.

No, you agree with AtW and H L Mencken.

So don't worry, you aren't going soft, you are still hard.

[Paddy]

3000 people die on roads every year in the UK and nobody bans cars, it seems to me that freedom is not always free and if the price of free society is 1-2% of extra deaths of those who die on roads alone (many more other deaths happen) anyway then its pretty reasonable.

Road deaths are not a threat to the State but deaths by terrorists are.

[sunnysan]

?

When John R mournfully suggests we need to give up more freedoms I would like to ask this question.

Under present legislation you can be
a) Stopped and searched at random
b) Detained for 30 days with no charge
c) Presumably by extention of these laws, have your house, car and any bodily orifice thouroughly searched


Other than impose curfews, or tag every UK citizen, what more "freedoms" can we possibly give up

Sunny "Mr Reid, is it OK with you if I go to the toilet now?" San

[Shimano105]

I think the solution is to increase immigration

[AtW]

Road deaths are not a threat to the State but deaths by terrorists are.

50 people dead from terrorist attacks is not threat to state, people should realise that:

a) freedom they enjoy is not free - it was paid for in blood in the past and some blood now will be necessary

b) there are lot more OTHER reasons that cause massive death - cancer, AIDS, deaths on roads: all this affects far more people than terrorists attacks in this country.

This does not mean terrorists should be allowed to kill citizens for free - no, but it means that security services should work in such a way so that people still have their fundamental freedoms in tact: anyone suggesting otherwise is working for terrorists.