TheAgitator.com
Canadian MADDness
Friday, June 13th, 2003I’ve mentioned here before that MADD’s Canada campaigns are even more fascist and asinine than its American campaigns, though if history’s any indicator, it’s only a matter of time before the stuff they’re pushing up north finds its way onto the domestic agenda — .05 BAC thresholds, for example.
Regular reader Andy from San Diego sends this bit from the Toronto Star about MADD Canada’s continuing assault on social drinkers.
All you really need to know is right in the lead:
Canadian police should be given broader authority to pull over drivers even when there is no obvious indication of impaired driving, says Mothers Against Drunk Driving.
They have the support of Canadian lawmakers.
How scary…..any one who has ever been pulled over without just cause should be very afraid. A few years ago I was with two other people and we were pulled over; then searched for absolutely no reason. The cop would not give us an explanation even though each of us politely asked him the reason for him pulling us over and the search. Within a few minutes an unmarked car arrived and a woman in the back shook her head in the negative. Again we asked the cop why he pulled us over. He said we threw out an empty cigarette pack ….he then made us go back down the road and pick it up.We had to ask him where we threw it out….and he followed us. The interesting part of this is that none of us smoked. So naturally he had thrown it out of his car window. Found out later that day a robbery had taken place close to where we were and the get away car was similar to the one we were in. I shudder to think of what would happen if police were given any more authority than they already have to harrass innocent people.
It should not be a shock to anyone that lawmakers in Canada are supportive of breaching the rights of Canadains. As the crime rate drops, and it is continuaously dropping, we become more and more shocked with crime. The lawmakers and the police have utilized this to increase penalties and circumvent rights. But for the independence of the judiciary, the RCMP et al would be the gestapo.
In T.O. a young girl is killed. Instead of focusing on capturing the killer, the police have used press conferences to call for a national DNA Bank and video cameras on the streets. They have gone door to door requesting “voluntary” dna samples after stating that they would look suspiciously on anyone that did not co-operate.
If i recall correctly, in winnipeg there are cameras on the streets that the police acknowledge are unconstitutional but they keep in place.
At least this has gotten them off the hell’s angels are the most serious threat since hitler theme. Arrest and trial, in virtual secret, based on association is a scary thing.
We are so busy worrying about the children that we are willing to line up to give our rights away. Of course law abiding citizens have noyhing to worry about….yet.
Not sure what the particulars of MADD’s request are, but this sounds pretty obviously unconstitutional by U.S. standards (assuming it’s not a checkpoint–don’t get me started on that travesty). I wonder how the Canadian high court would view this?
I’m from Vancouver, BC, which already has insanely prohibitive liquor laws. Our asshole premier Gordon Campbell was making some noise about cutting some of those laws (basically his only position that I supported) when he got caught doing 125 km/h on a Maui highway with (I believe) an 0.16 blood-alcohol level.
Instead of resigning like a man, he now does whatever MADD tells him to. This includes such genius laws as forbidding teenagers to drive a car with more than one passenger, and forbidding them to drive at night. As far as sane liquor laws, such as allowing liquor stores to sell on sundays or allowing corner stores to sell beer. But hey, pot’s been decriminalized.
Missed a spot: sane liquor laws will not be passed not that our premier’s been jailed for drunk-driving.
Change the name of the US chapter of MADD to “Mothers Against Free Independent Americans” or just “MAFIA” for short.
i agree
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