grumpyCouncil Imprisons Ratepayers
January 30th 2008 11:05
Have you ever felt you were being screwed over by your locally elected representatives? Yes, I bet you have. Many times, even. I wonder though, how many of you have been held prisoner in your own house by same said guardians of the public welfare?
I am to be so held. On the 16th of February 2007 I will be refused egress from my own land, imprisoned for one day. The charge? Being a peasant farmer and of such low importance in the community that any legal, moral or constitutional rights I might have can be waived for the sake of a bunch of petrol heads who want to use the only public road access to my property for a race track.
I can hear your reasonable questions. Surely I received a notice from council? A fair warning? Sufficient oily reasons why my co-operation in this matter could only serve the public good? My palm greased with recompense for the inconvenience? Promises that any fires, damage to my fences or premature loss of stock will be put right from the mighty coffers of the Waratah-Wynyard council?
Bwahahaha!!
I got a letter, not from the council, but from a private company no less, who assert that my public access to health care providers, food, vetinarian services, urgent farm supplies, access to my own upper paddocks, my own plans to travel or simply walk freely along the road have been cancelled, and that should I decide otherwise then the mighty arm of the law will come crashing down upon my lowly dirt stained and sweaty brow.
Hmmm, I thought. What law, exactly? What law of the land can be invoked to supervene over my rights as a citizen to have free and unimpeded access and egress from my own property removed for the sake of a privately funded road race?
And what is a private company doing, telling me what I can or cannot do?
Well it isn’t hard to understand, is it? The council doesn’t have a leg to stand on, so how do you pull something like this off without getting in the shit? That’s right – you don’t tell anyone. Then, you make the race holders do the dirty work, tell them to ham it up to look like its an official letter, pull the whole thing out as a fait accompli and bango, the hayseeds won’t know what hit ‘em.
Well… that is, not until a Mitsubishi Lancer goes through the fence and kills one of their cows, or their kids.
Oh, yes. You know on a race track how they have those barricades and things? Nope. On the freeways, just in case some boy racer crosses the line or goes to sleep at the wheel? Nope. Where talking farm city here man, with no safety precautions whatever. If the shit hits the fan, its lookout!
But bugger the petrol heads, it’s my rights that I want explained here. I want to know how anyone can lawfully imprison me in my own house in peace time.
The only possible reason is that it is for my own safety. But, if that is the case then when did it become council policy to willfully endanger the public?
That sounds like a good charge to me; something actually worthy of imprisonment.
So, Waratah-Wynyard councilors – get this. You thought no-one would mind, you thought your little back pocket deal with the petrol heads would just slide by without a hitch. After all, no-one is going to complain, are they? It’s just for a day.
Well, we are complaining. We don’t want your car racing games played along our road. We don’t want your noise and pollution and your silly rhetoric about “promoting the area”. We want to be treated like the decent, rate paying citizens we are. We expect you to uphold our rights, not walk all over them. We expect you to maintain and upgrade the roads for our safety, not for the sake of few quick bucks from some promoter who couldn’t care less whose rights are being jumped on.
Oh yes, one more thing. Just in case you think this is going to be all over when the last Porsche is towed away – forget it. You might have had our willing agreement – perhaps. But you chose to ignore us, to set your own agenda above our rights. We aren’t going to forgive you for that – not for a long time.
I am to be so held. On the 16th of February 2007 I will be refused egress from my own land, imprisoned for one day. The charge? Being a peasant farmer and of such low importance in the community that any legal, moral or constitutional rights I might have can be waived for the sake of a bunch of petrol heads who want to use the only public road access to my property for a race track.
Bwahahaha!!
I got a letter, not from the council, but from a private company no less, who assert that my public access to health care providers, food, vetinarian services, urgent farm supplies, access to my own upper paddocks, my own plans to travel or simply walk freely along the road have been cancelled, and that should I decide otherwise then the mighty arm of the law will come crashing down upon my lowly dirt stained and sweaty brow.
Hmmm, I thought. What law, exactly? What law of the land can be invoked to supervene over my rights as a citizen to have free and unimpeded access and egress from my own property removed for the sake of a privately funded road race?
And what is a private company doing, telling me what I can or cannot do?
Well it isn’t hard to understand, is it? The council doesn’t have a leg to stand on, so how do you pull something like this off without getting in the shit? That’s right – you don’t tell anyone. Then, you make the race holders do the dirty work, tell them to ham it up to look like its an official letter, pull the whole thing out as a fait accompli and bango, the hayseeds won’t know what hit ‘em.
Well… that is, not until a Mitsubishi Lancer goes through the fence and kills one of their cows, or their kids.
Oh, yes. You know on a race track how they have those barricades and things? Nope. On the freeways, just in case some boy racer crosses the line or goes to sleep at the wheel? Nope. Where talking farm city here man, with no safety precautions whatever. If the shit hits the fan, its lookout!
But bugger the petrol heads, it’s my rights that I want explained here. I want to know how anyone can lawfully imprison me in my own house in peace time.
The only possible reason is that it is for my own safety. But, if that is the case then when did it become council policy to willfully endanger the public?
That sounds like a good charge to me; something actually worthy of imprisonment.
So, Waratah-Wynyard councilors – get this. You thought no-one would mind, you thought your little back pocket deal with the petrol heads would just slide by without a hitch. After all, no-one is going to complain, are they? It’s just for a day.
Well, we are complaining. We don’t want your car racing games played along our road. We don’t want your noise and pollution and your silly rhetoric about “promoting the area”. We want to be treated like the decent, rate paying citizens we are. We expect you to uphold our rights, not walk all over them. We expect you to maintain and upgrade the roads for our safety, not for the sake of few quick bucks from some promoter who couldn’t care less whose rights are being jumped on.
Oh yes, one more thing. Just in case you think this is going to be all over when the last Porsche is towed away – forget it. You might have had our willing agreement – perhaps. But you chose to ignore us, to set your own agenda above our rights. We aren’t going to forgive you for that – not for a long time.
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