SPG and Sus Laws Make A Potential Comeback
Breaking News on the BBC: The government is considering giving all police officers across the UK “stop and question” powers, the Home Office has confirmed. The proposal, allowing police to ask people about their identity and movement is among measures being considered for a new anti-terror bill. This sounds like a blinged-up version of Thatcher’s disgusting SUS laws to me. It’s all going to go horribly wrong and IS terribly wrong. We are the most ‘watched’ nation in the world, now we will be the most ‘monitored’. It reminds me of the late 70’s/early 80’s and the horror of the SPG. I predict a riot! We don’t live in a democracy anymore and we shouldn’t take it. Our government has managed to ‘criminalise’ youth and kill most social resources for those that need it. What have we been left with? A load of CCTV camera’s and a health and education service on it’s knees. Bad. Bad. Bad.
(Photo: My Punk and Disorderly III The Final Solution Vinyl LP Cover) UPDATE:I posted a comment about my views on the recommended new stop and question laws on the bbc news blog tonight – apparently I have to wait for it to be ‘moderated’. My point entirely!
Rockmother 
SPG?<br/>Special Pig Group?<br/><br/>I remember them. Not nice people to do business with.<br/><br/>Why are we the most watched nation?
Well Said Mum!
Simon – thank you for the link – I am a great fan of Banksy as you know<br/><br/>Ister – thanks to Tony Blair we have more cctv’s per head than in any other country in the world.<br/><br/>Tony – cheers Tony!
The banksy is perfect. That is how it will be. Facism with a happy face…it’s all for your own good remember.
There are loads of CCTVs around the cities, but why do the powers that be feel the need for them? Crime rates go up in virtually every other country and they’ll continue to do so over here, CCTV or no CCTV.<br/>Whoever those bright sparks are that are in power who insist on implementing those ‘eye in the sky’ peep shows have been reading too much George Orwell.
Dickley – oh – I thought it was a play on E?<br/><br/>Ister – exactly. Let’s just spy on everyone and say you can’t do anything or even wear hooded tops whilst walking down a high street. Let’s just stop someone and check them out just because they look ‘foreign’ or ‘dodgy’. Don’t get me started!!
In my experience it seems that if you are a coloured fellow the police do this anyway. And arrest you and charge you with assault if you sort-of understandably tell them to fuck off. I then have to write a report analysing your ‘offending behaviour’. I’m rethinking this whole ‘cog in the machinery of repression’ thing I seem to have accidentally chosen as my profession.
People just don’t seem to protest against this sort of thing anymore, do they? Which is why governments can get away with more and more legislation that limits freedom.<br/><br/>Mind you, the one thing that might get the public agitated is the introduction of microchips to rubbish bins. That’s their idea of "an end to civil liberties".
and everyone thought that movie "enemy of the state" was outlandish…just thank your lucky stars you have dubya on ya’ll butts!
shit..i meant you DON’T have dubya…i need to go to bed…
Violet – hmmm….<br/><br/>Betty – no – but WHY don’t we protest anymore? Is it because they have made it impossible to protest about anything without getting some sort of public order offence?<br/><br/>Savannah – can’t someone just bump him off? He should be tried for war crimes.
Back to the bad old days, mmm. Over here they just interned everyone who might be a ‘terrorist’ ie all catholic men under 55 who happened to live in the areas they targeted. I think you’ll find it didn’t work then and I can’t see it working with young muslims now.
what I’ve often wondered is, WHY is there so much surveillance in britain anyway? it’s not like the average british citizen has some kind of a lock on bad behavior or anything. <br/><br/>at least over here the video surveillance is done by proper criminals in public restrooms and elevators. it’s much more honest that way. the outlaw spirit of the old west and all that.
Realdoc – yep – they passed the law in Norn Irn first<br/><br/>Firsty – I think we need a bit more outlaw spirit here if you ask me!
and son of RoMo, of course…
PS nice surprise to see you! x
Scary times indeed. I can’t believe the ID cards are getting passed with hardly a whisper from anyone, either…<br/><br/>And CCTV does not protect people. It doesn’t appear to be any kind of deterrent against violence, so it fails to deter crime and just detracts from our civil liberties.
Blair’s position is that, to defend our hardwon personal freedoms against "turr" (copyright: G. Bush Jr), he’s got to trash all our personal freedoms.
I remember last time round. Ethnic minorities and obvious homosexuals were the most likely to get stopped under sus laws. maybe it’s time to dust off some Tom Robinson Band protest songs.
what chance have we got when the recordings from cctv can get sold to production companies for "police camera action" type bollox?<br/>The "War on Terror", or as Borat put it, the war of terror, has a lot to answer for. Just imagine, in a couple of months, if you get caught on cctv, smoking, and looking as though you’re thinking of doing something a little bit dodge-pot, then you’ll be done for…
Most of those CCTV clips are inadmissable in a court of law, so they tend to end up on YouTube.
Miles and miles of film…does someone have to actually watch all of it?
Annie – I know – what’s going on? Lovely to see you too despite son of Romo being so cheeky! We didn’t expect to see you there so was a nice surprise.<br/><br/>Sir Anthony – that’s one of the worst things about his legacy – his utter lack of respect for common decency and human right<br/><br/>Llewtrah – we need another Rock Against Racism kind of thing…Where’s red Saunders when you need him?<br/><br/>Howeser – it’s all a nonsense<br/><br/>Ister – or wiped before people can even see the evidence!<br/><br/>Arabella – no – because often there is no film to watch…
Ah yes – The Stockwell underground caper.
Ister – that was wrong in every degree