In 2010, just as most of the west was gearing up for Christmas, the east was launching into the Arab Spring. Further conspiring to rob us of our steadily depleting rights and freedoms is our own fearful nature. Take for example the big bad bikies. They are the leather clad boogey men of the modern criminal world. All it took was a fight at Sydney airport and suddenly Al Qeida were pulled down the number two on the list of scary shite we have to worry about. Then there was a constant stream of media fear mongering as an all out bikie war seemed inevitable. Well in retrospect it turned out to be nigh non existent. There were a few drive bys, but the all out horror of say the Milperra Massacre was absent. Soon it was business as usual, but oh no the government didn't miss a chance to get a last minute victory. Those Association Laws AKA the 'bikie laws' were passed. This was the sure fire way to stop these two wheeled Al Capones (interesting google for you:Google Al Capone and milk expiry date). What happened next? Well the bikies got together forming the UMCA or United Motorcycle Council of Australia. In effect the Government made them MORE organised. GENIUS, you really have to laugh at the irony (as many of the bikies themselves did). So what was the problem. Well even a cursory look at the laws shows they are the most easily manipulated legislation passed since the Patriot Act. As was discovered by Charlie Foster of Inverell, the first poor schmuck to get nabbed. He may have had a chequered past but he was no bikie. After the local cops busted him for the 'crime' of hanging out with his friends, he copped a twelve month gaol term. Nearly twelve times the time he was given for assault. Luckily his sentence was fought and overturned, ironically by a free attorney from the bikies. A very classic tale. Naturally though people do not care, because hey they still got some bikies. Interesting that we fought the anti-terrorism laws though. Something must have changed I suppose. Locally though the law has further targeted the citizen, primarily those who want to operate a tattoo parlour. Why? Well because naturally they must have links to the big bad bikies. So the legislation being created now will force operators to be fingerprinted. Afterall if you got nothing to hide you have nothing to fear. Damn doesn't that sound familiar, by the way I hate privacy don't you? Additionally there is a new permit, and yes you will have to fork out cash to get one. How is all this justified? Well bikies of course, we gotta stop the big bad bikies. In the end it is always the same. It is fear, freedom, and safety. People get scared, and listen to whatever their leaders tell them. They accept the loss of some freedoms because they want to be safer. That is right, people are happy to trade Freedoms for Safety. That is like trading a cow for magic beans. Safety has to be the biggest illusion known to mankind. Safety is that nice warm blanket you clung to as a child. There is no safety. You could trade all of your freedoms away and still not be safe. The only people that win, are those smart folks that have your cow, while you stare in awe at your little magic beans. That is what the Arab Spring was, people saying to hell with the beans, I want my cow back. So why did we watch in so much awe? Possibly because deep down we know we are doing the wrong thing, that we feel free, but know we are becoming less so. We are envious that we lack the courage of our convictions. They faced armed opposition, shelling, airstrikes, and bullets. Yet we shudder at the idea of a few leather clad bikies, so afraid we trade it all away for a government issued security blanket. Just something to think about, now go back to your angry birds |
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