Paranoia: The Census 2011, the Police State and Big Brother

"Comrades, fill in your census forms, or it's off to Siberia!"

For the first time in donkeys years I'm not a member of a political party, and I find it very liberating. It has given me an opportunity to reassess things, membership of any party inevitably involves compromise and a responsibility to reluctantly toe the line on some issues. Having said that I will still vote for the Libertarian Party if I have a candidate, apart from the May elections which I am boycotting because of the latest foreign adventure into Libya.

What has disappointed me in recent weeks is the attitude of certain groups I have supported for a long time to the 2011 Census. I think it's a waste of time and money, especially as various parts of the state already have more information about us on numerous databases and I've blogged about this before. To be honest I found the census questionnaire less intrusive than the average job application.

But two organisations have especially disappointed me, NO2ID and Big Brother Watch. I believe both organisations have a valuable role to play as the state becomes ever more intrusive and authoritarian but, as with any campaign, you have to pick your fights. In the last few days they have both banged on about how census data would/could be accessed by MI5. That signals a level of paranoia that I find disconcerting and would make the average member of the public question their campaigns on other, more serious issues.

Via Twitter I have challenged both outfits to point out what on the census form could be of any possible interest to MI5. They have not responded. If you are reading this in the UK you will either have your form ready to complete, or will have already done it. Please, if you agree with NO2ID and Big Brother Watch, let me know, via comments, what you think on the form you would prefer MI5 not to know about you. Obviously I wouldn't expect you to divulge personal info, just mention the question or page number that you find horrendously intrusive.

Rather than asking us if we would like to violently overthrow the government, or even if we think that the policing of demos is excessive it merely asks how we get to work and if we are employed or self employed. There you go Miss Moneypenny, no need to get 007 on to me. I'm self employed and drive to work when I work in Manchester. I bet GCHQ are now going through my blog with a fine tooth comb!

At the same time I had a disagreement with Big Brother Watch on Twitter about today's demo in London against the government's half hearted attempt to clear up Labour's financial mess. They had retweeted a comment that somebody knew lots of people who were not going to the demo today because they are terrified of the police. My response, although more polite, was bollocks! More paranoia I'm afraid.

I accept that the police are not perfect, far from it, but anybody who is too scared of the police to go on a demo should really seek help. I suspect my sister and her hubbie will be on the march today. I don't agree with them and wouldn't go on the march myself, but I know they are not a pair of wimps who are easily scared and would certainly not be intimidated from making a stand for what they believe in by a British Bobby.

I found that nonsense especially disagreeable, verging on the obscene, when you look at what is happening in Egypt, Libya, Yemen, Zimababwe, Bahrein and elsewhere. I wouldn't like to be depending on a bunch of pansies who are scared of the British police if our backs were really up against the wall, would you?

They make the loony wing of the Eurosceptic movement who refer to the EUSSR sound almost sane.

Racist Attacks By MBPA Continue

The racist Metropolitan Black Police Association is continuing its campaign against the Metropolitan Police. It is now calling the head of the police watchdog 'a racist'. Pot and kettle spring to mind.

Full pathetic story here.

Like cries of rape that prove malicious, claims of racism that prove malicious should be severely punished perhaps then the MBPA will stop making these claims that invariably prove unfounded and malicious.

In fact it makes sense to abolish the MBPA as a starter to helping 'race relations'.

More Uniformed Thuggery

Ok the girl in the following video was taunting the policeman, but what happened to policing by consent? When did it become legal for the police to administer instant corporal punishment?



Something has to change and pretty quickly, before the police alienate us all in the way the politicians have. If respect for the police finally breaks down completely, the consequences will be truly and frighteningly disastrous.

The Police And The Citizens

As the state encroaches ever further into our lives the police are increasingly seen, by many of us, as a mere tool of the state. They are no longer the idealised Dixon of Dock Green figures that we used to like seeing them as. They increasingly resemble the paramilitary thugs we only used to see in Europe.

If you doubt that I suggest you head to London and join a demo, or go to a high profile football match. Sadly, many perceive the police today as little more than uniformed thugs.

Here is the BBC coverage of the police attack on an innocent man, a man who was wandering around in the wrong place at the wrong time, not even part of the G20 demo, which still couldn't have justified the action of the copper.

OK, so the police didn't beat Mr Tomlinson to death. But he died of a heart attack minutes after the unprovoked attack by one of our 'boys in blue'.

Straw Man Speaks

Jack Straw says the Met is no longer 'institutionally racist' thanks to the Macpherson report.

Actually Jack, it never was!

Police Racial Fiasco

Following my earlier post on the leaflets distributed in the North West here is the report that appeared on Teletext today.

But, once the politics of race gets into the system, decline and fall are inevitable. Here is the story of the Metropolitan Police Black Officers Association withdrawing from meetings with managers.

The easy way to end this industrial action is to sack those officers involved. Then, to ensure no repeat of this continuing nonsense, sack Sir Ian Blair. Blair hoist on his own politically correct petard would be one of life's sweetest ironies.

Police State

Police (left) arrest a Londoner for having eyes too close together. Officer Dibble said: "He definitely looks like the type of person that might commit a crime one day!"

Yet another poor innocent is raided by the police at 3-00am, dragged down the nick and locked up for 11 hours. Eventually Officer Dibble blushes, apologises and sends the poor sod home.

Now, far from belittling theft of anything, but is it really necessary to raid the home of somebody suspected of nicking a telly at 3-00 in the morning? I grew up thinking that's the time you raid train robbers' houses, or IRA suspects. In a case such as this why not pop round his house in the afternoon for a chat and a cup of tea, a bit more Dixon of Dock Green than Sweeney. Sadly it seems that the police, with the help of 10 years of New Labour, have lost all sense of proportion. Or are they just a bunch of mindless bastards?

What is it about Blairs?

Sir Ian shows what he thinks of us!

Why is it that Blairs never seem to know when we have had enough of them. First Tony now Ian. I bet they would be the bores at the party who stand in the kitchen, boring the host to death at 4-30am, when the poor old host wanted to bugger off to bed, like the rest of the guests had, at 3-00am.

Now in the case of Tony he was elected, so the general public, some of them, should be thoroughly ashamed of themselves. But in the case of Ian, who by the way should be stripped of his 'K' too, he has no such mandate.

The problem is that the prosecution of the Met for health 'n' safety breaches has muddied the waters. Most thinking people in Britain automatically side with those being terrorised by the health 'n' safety Gestapo, and in the case of the Met, justifiably so. However, the Met has been found guilty of crass incompetence by the IPCC and, for 24 hours after the shooting of the Brazilian, Ian Blair had no idea what, if anything, was going on. In most organisations such a criminally incompetent CEO would have been down the road, months if not years ago.

The problem here is that Ian's boss is Jacqui Smith, the Home Secretary. Now, we can't have politicians sacking incompetents can we? Or having a quiet word suggesting that the honorable thing would be to walk? No that wouldn't do. After all we may then expect politicians to behave with honour and dignity! Mind you, remembering poor David Kelly perhaps Ian should think twice before going for any strolls in the woods.