Helen Clark on the nanny state
How do you respond to people who complain about "nanny state" and that they are"sick of Labour telling them how to run their lives"?
I can't relate to the criticism at all [because I don't have kids to smack and I don't have to pay for anything]. It just doesn't square to me with anything we have done [apart from the smacking legislation]. I stand for the maximum possible freedom of people [except when they want to have a say on political matters in election year, have a high pressure shower, or smack their kids, for example], but any democratic society will place some constraints on that, for example racist abuse [ and, like child abuse, this government has placed no legal restraints on that]. There is always a line that is drawn somewhere but I am someone personally who likes to be left free to live my life [while telling others as to how they should live their lives]. I think the people who scream 'nanny state' are usually the ones who want to be the most prescriptive about the way people live their lives [so I thought I`d play my part as Prime Minister to assist them] .
Labels: helen clark
5 Comments:
Hi BN. Can you ge ONE THING through your head?
Hitting kids was ALWAYS illegal, even under the old Act. If the police did decide to prosecute - an they have always had that discretion, too - then a person CHARGED with assualting their child could attempt to use the defence the old Act provided in Section 59.
PLEASE NOTE: That defence ONLY became relevant AFTER the police had laid charges.
The whole anti-smacking thing has been like a national IQ test and roughly 85% of Kiwis have failed the test. They didn't know the old law and don't know the new law. But they have a strong opinion firmly founded on near-total ignorance exploited by the cynical for their own political ends.
The proportions revealed are in line with my own assessment over 50 years that barely more than 10% of the population has any real idea what is going on and the rest are vulnerable to manipulation based on their motions as they know so little about so much their emotions are their only real compass.
NZ is far from a "nanny state". That is utter drivel. We are more free than Americans or Canadians and I say that from personal experience of both.
At a family level, our government is actually very hands off until you steal something or hit someone. Our business environment is 3rd most fee on Earth. Our liberties on every level - in real terms - are among the least trampled in the world. Department of Homeland Security anyone?
On more example of how the Right shits on the truth for political advantage.....or due to witless ignorance.
so whats this government done to stop child abuse without constraining individual freedom of the lawful?
Dave: Don't you know? Why not?
I just wanted you to tell me, that's all. Perhaps you don't know. Do tell if you do.
Good Call Dave!
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