Re: Yesterday we received the great news that the Hunting Bill will be reintroduced to the Commons next week.

From: Martin Willett (ignoredmailbox_at_ntlworld.com)
Date: 09/17/04 

Date: Fri, 17 Sep 2004 11:33:48 +0100

Oz wrote:

<3,217 words snipped>

I think that comes under the heading of filibustering.

There was about thirty separate paragraphs there awaiting a reply,
almost all of them separate tangents to the original theme.

The antiquated twaddle is the national anthem itself. There is not a
single sentiment in that dirge that I agree with apart from the word
happy, yes, I'd like Elizabeth Windsor to be happy, but not by
reigning over me or for glory or in the name of a rather unsympathetic
fictional figure from Hebrew mythology.

It is never a good time to debate anything that the conservative
(small c)opposition (small o) don't want passed, there will always be
something more urgent to discuss (even if they are against that too).
If we took the attitude that parliamentary time should only be used
for the most important priorities then the civil service and MPs would
never even get a debate on a pay rise, the House of Lords would still
be full of nothing but hereditary peers and bishops, the groat would
still be legal tender, they'd probably be some regiments of the army
called the Kings Royal Brigade of Darkies on Camels or suchlike and
Muslim Royal Navy ratings would be getting rum rations. Sometimes the
little things need to be addressed and they will not be put off by
endless delays and procedural manoeuvring to get in the way of the
will of the commons.

The will of the commons is clear. Hunting will be banned. There will
be some publicity stunts and people will declare their intentions
never to comply with the law. Are you old enough to remember those
people who swore they'd never give up pricing things in shillings? Big
talk is easy.

People don't need to be arrested for hunting while they are doing it.
When shops tried to defy the Sunday Trading laws the police didn't
turn up and drag the proprietors away from their shops in front of
crowds of shoppers. There are many more subtle ways of enforcing the
law than turning up and trying to arrest every member of a hunt while
they are doing it. Of course the whole balance of power between
huntsmen and hunt saboteurs will change totally when the saboteurs
become upholders of the law, have-a-go heroes no less, any assault
upon a saboteur will then become an extremely serious offence, assault
in the pursuit of a crime, and the carrying of a riding crop becomes
an offence of going equipped/armed while committing an offence.
Saboteurs will in fact have a moral and public duty to make a citizens
arrest.

These will indeed be interesting times. 

-- 
Martin Willett
http://mwillett.org/
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