The scoundrels in the commons have once more rejected the peers’ amendments to the ID Cards Bill.
Peers have twice defeated the plans, which they say break Labour’s election promise that the initial ID scheme would be voluntary.
A piece of wonderful double-speak from the truly execrable Safety Elephant, Charles Clarke:
But Home Secretary Charles Clarke said passports were “voluntary documents” that no-one was forced to renew.
Of course not. No ID card = no foreign travel – even if it is a part of your job requirement. Where’s the coercion in that? The New(speak) Labour dictionary is in force, once more. My dictionary, a proper one that defines words in the English language in commonly recognised definitons clearly defines “voluntary” as meaning something rather different. Remember this from the Collins English Dictionary?
voluntary adj. 1. performed. undertaken, or brought about by free choice or willingly: a voluntary donation. 2. (of persons) serving or acting in a specified function without compulsion or promise of remuneration a: voluntary social worker. 3. done by, composed of, or functioning with the aid of volunteers: a voluntary association. 4. exercising or having the faculty of willing a: voluntary agent. 5. spontaneous: voluntary laughter. 6. Law. a. acting or done without legal obligation, compulsion, or persuasion. b. made without payment or recompense: a voluntary conveyance. 7. (of the muscles of the limbs, neck, etc.) having their action controlled by the will. 8. maintained by the voluntary actions or contributions of individuals and not by the state: voluntary schools. -n., pI. –taries. 9. Music. a composition or improvisation, usually for organ, played at the beginning or end of a church service. -’voluntarily adv.
“Without legal obligation or persuasion” means that you don’t force people to do something because they want or need to do something else, whether that something else is voluntary or not. Voluntary means that there are no preconditions – it means a completely free choice with no other consideration. For fuck’s sake can it be any more clear? Registration on the NIR involves a legal obligation if you need a new passport – that is coercion. If you use coercion, it is not VOLUNTARY.
The Lords are simply holding the rapscallions in the commons to their manifesto pledge to keep ID Cards and registration on the Stasi database voluntary during the first phase. Voluntary; without coercion, without legal obligarion, exercising free will, without compulsion, without persuasion, by choice. Jeez! What is it with these nincompoops and the English language? It seems that joining the ZANU Labour party involves checking one’s brain in at the cloakroom on the way in and along with it any sense of decency, honesty and honour.
Every day that passes shows up the obsequious jackanapes on the Labour back benches as the technologically ignorant, servile, spineless, self-serving wretches that they are.
Democracy? What’s that, then?
Trying to tie ID cards to passport renewals, thus making the former “voluntary” is one of the most deceitful attempts by HMG to force through the ID cards issue. Again it’s surprising to see how little resistance there seems to be to this “voluntary” scheme and how few actually get it.
Clarke, that must be the most loathsome neolabour technoprat apparatchik of the whole bunch. Although execrable Safety Elephant sounds good too :lol:…
Worth pointing out that this is democracy. It’s just not the same thing as liberty.
I was being somewhat facetious 😉
Unfortunately there is absolutely no way that the government will ever allow this bill to pass with the NIR voluntary. If they did nobody would ever sign up, since these things give ordinary people absolutely nothing. Most likely outcomes over it being voluntary are in my opinion: the Parliament Act is used, the Lords give in, or the bill is dropped.