Today's World

"Never before have so many been taken for so much and left with so little."   Van Panopoulos. The following has happened in many so called civilised countries.  Whatever excuses are offered, it boils down to government by government for government.  The people are regarded as a nuisance if they object authoritarianism and treated with contempt.  The disagreeing people are ignorant, unsophisticated and should be locked up for life.  At the very least they should accept official edicts as gospel. New Zealand is a prime example of democracy on the back burner.  It doesn't matter whom you vote for, the same type of people are elected to the corridors of power.  Not once in many years has it made any real difference as to which political party assumes control. Once elected they ignore the people's needs and push their own agenda.  Never mind that it destroys initiative and creates unemployment.  Come what may, the ruling elite must show their superiority.  Perhaps a couple of examples would be appropriate. The New Zealand Labour Party has been in coalition power for sometime.  Naturally, familiarity breeds contempt and those who think they know what's best for us, decided that smoking stunted the growth, was a health hazzard and would cause collapse of society if allowed to continue.  Henceforth, from the 4th December 2004, smoking will be banned in all bars and restaurants.      Good food and nutrition means Kiwis are above average height, with males averaging 5ft 10 inches.  So trying to stunt the growth doesn't work.  No one would disagree that smoking is a health hazzard.  However, smokers pay exorbitant taxes for their pleasure, die earlier and thus subsidise the old age care of non smokers.  Smoking and drinking in bars has been the social norm for thousands of years and commonsense says you can't change human nature.  Yet the smoking 25% (and dropping) of the voting population will suffer discrimination.  By all means educate the kids but leave the older smoker alone.  He's more than paid for his habit. Besides coughing is good exercise and clears the lungs of industrial pollution and the hot air waffling from parliament. With revenue from smokers shrinking, the experts decided that minor speeding offences were a good money earner.  The police force was politicised and now spend endless hours hiding behind bushes with speed cameras.  Multi millions are collected from otherwise law abiding citizens.  This has created huge resentment and many people refuse to assist police with serious criminal investigations.  Property and violent offences are increasing and detection rates static or dropping.  It's interesting to note that in certain areas, the more speeding fines collected, the higher the real crime rate.  Speeding is only seventh on the list of causing accidents, with inattention being the main culprit.  So by all means hammer the dangerous and drunken driver but leave the harmless motorist alone.  To use the American maxim.  If something ain't broke, why fix it? But government self justification propaganda has taken over.  TV is riddled with public- funded ads indicating that smoking is a major killer.  The same applies to speeding, with mangled cars and bodies shown.  From a population of four million people, smoking and motor accidents cause about a thousand deaths annually, yet suddenly they are the reason for our collapsing society.  Obviously, there will always be do-gooders and the mindless that agree with anything officialdom promotes. Sadly, commonsense is no longer taught in schools. Government insists that the public needs educating.  However, the reducing death rate from accidents is the result of better cars with built in safety features.  Speed is more or less irrelevant.  Smokers and non smokers have a 100% death rate, with old age still being the predominate killer.  Perhaps it's politicians that need educating?  Is it really necessary for them to show their arrogance so publically?  Whom the hell do they think they're kidding and why should we vote for them?