Proud Parents; NSA and the Kiwis Edition

New Zealand is a country that has a Bill of Rights, which includes the right to be free from unreasonable searches of one's correspondence. Notwithstanding any of that, it came to light recently that New Zealand's Government Communications Security Bureau was illegally spying on New Zealanders.

The government's fix for that was to make such spying legal. The Prime Minister of NZ (some clown named "John Key") is mouthing the same sort of platitudes that we hear from our own President and politicians: Trust us, we'd never abuse these powers, we'll do the right thing, and the classic line of those who do no wrong have nothing to fear.

In NZ, search warrants are apparently issued by justices of the peace. After the NZ parliament passed the Big Brother Act of 2013, one of them resigned. He issued a statement that included these words:

I’ve spent my life studying what happens when a government acts without proper regard for fundamental rights and when it claims, and abuses, unreasonable powers. I cannot in conscience be party, however remotely, to such a process. So I have no choice but to resign.

I hope that the Kiwis come to their senses, throw Key's party out in their elections next year and repeal that law.

I also hope that some of our own judges have the stones of J.P. Gwynn and also resign in protest.

And I also would hope that our own politicians, or, failing that, our own electorate stands up against our growing national security state.

But of those three hopes, only the first may come to pass.

(H/T)