On Liberty

April 5, 2020 Longrider Civil Liberties 41

Someone said to me today that now is not the time to be concerned about civil liberties, for there are lives to be saved. This same person made the claim that I cannot pick and choose which laws to obey.

Yet now is precisely the time to stand up for civil liberties. Times of emergency are times when the herd is inclined to panic and demand that their leaders remove those liberties for the sake of safety.

History got there before us and a greater man than I will ever be made that famous statement:

“Those who would give up essential Liberty, to purchase a little temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety”

He was right then and he is right now. It is easy to go along with the stampede when a bogeyman threatens us. And, yes, there is a threat. No reasonable person denies this. However, those of us who dissent are the ones challenging the need for such draconian action. And I make no apology for doing so. The control freaks who have spent their lives fantasising about imposing their world view on others, who would have the young conscripted into the military to give them a taste of discipline are now out in force, for their unfashionable views are suddenly in vogue – because it saves lives, they would have us believe. But it is no more than the same control freakery and desire to impose upon others that was lampooned by P J Wodehouse with his Roderick Spode character.

Make no mistake, though, such people are dangerous if allowed a free reign. Already we have seen the police exercising their powers with the relish normally reserved for a child opening presents on Christmas morning.

And the justification for this restriction is that it is for our own good. That, then is the excuse for what is this new tyranny:

“Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It would be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent moral busybodies. The robber baron’s cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end for they do so with the approval of their own conscience.”

C. S. Lewis

This justification is used by the new Spodes as they regale us on social media seeking to shame us for wanting to live ordinary lives. Seeking to shut down the dissenters. Oh, not by the usual means, but by accusing us of over reacting (glass houses anyone?) and of engaging in conspiracy theories.

On that last one, I would point out that conspiracy theories require a conspiracy. In our case, we have an act of parliament that passed with no proper scrutiny, followed by Plod using drones to spy on people walking their dogs. None of this is a conspiracy. All of it is a hysterical reaction to a nasty bug.

That nasty bug is indeed a problem. However, it is a problem that the Taiwanese coped with without the mass hysteria. One of their solutions was to close their borders, something we seem not to have done, yet the people within those borders are under house arrest.

Now we have the establishment of snitch lines whereby people can call the police to report infringements of their neighbours. Of this, I would remind people that you will have to live with your neighbours when this panic has passed.

I am accused of being over dramatic when I refer to East Germany’s Stasi, The Gestapo or the KVD, yet none of these organisations was particularly potent in themselves. They worked effectively because they were backed up by an army of informers. Now, it seems, this nasty phenomenon has crossed to these shores. But, of course, it is all about saving lives and sometimes you have to crush those lives to save them. What is life lived under tyranny worth?

I am told that I should respect the police. Indeed, I grew up under that ethos. However, when the police decided to start policing thought-crime on the Internet, I started to lose respect. When they sent an officer to a man’s house to “check his thinking” it died completely. I owe no respect to the police and they will get none. When they return to the nine Peelian principles of policing, I will consider changing my mind on the matter.

As for obeying the law because it is the law, then again, I return to history. Those who hid fleeing Jews during the time of the third Reich were breaking the law. Those who were hunting them down were obeying it. When the law is immoral or unjust, it is beholden on good men to refuse to obey.

“One has not only a legal, but a moral responsibility to obey just laws. Conversely, one has a moral responsibility to disobey unjust laws. I would agree with St. Augustine that “an unjust law is no law at all.””

Martin Luther King

I have stood accused of being strange – even hypocritical – because of my views on the recent legislation and my refusal to actively enable it. All I can say to that is that if this places me in the same camp as Martin Luther King, then I am in good company.

One final point – when the herd has a desire to go in one direction such that it tries to stifle dissent, then dissenting voices are more necessary than ever. I may stand alone with my dissent, but speak out, I will.

41 Comments

  1. May I just say, alone you are not, there are many many such thinkers out here all watching for that “Light blue touch paper and stand back” moment.

  3. The Franklin quote is always used out of context. While it sounds great for those of us who value liberty above pretty much all else, it refers to a dispute between the Pennsylvania Assembly and the colonial governor. The ‘essential liberty’ is the right to tax the lands of the Penn family to fund frontier wars, the ‘temporary safety’ is the offer of funding from the Penn family in return for acknowledging that the Assembly has no right to tax its lands.

    • It is always good to learn about the context of these sayings. In this case, I would say that the quote stands on it’s own merits and is relevant now and was relevant when everyone was panicking about Islamic terrorists.

    • And she takes medical advice from a bloke who takes his family off to the beach a few times during this pandemic. Yes, her medical adviser/health minister has been slammed in the press for doing what the Scots woman did.

  5. No you are not alone. There seem to be moves afoot to ban people from going outside altogether. At Samizdata one commenter is wondering what it would take for the British public to kick back. Many have commented on the fact that our borders are still open and are asking why. When it comes to loss of liberty, the people who behave like sheep are as dangerous as the would be dictators.

    • The borders I find truly bizarre. The rise in new cases in Australia as of 15;00 (AEST) on Sunday was down to 2.5%, from 3.3% the day before and 4.4% the day before that. The overwhelming majority of cases have been from overseas travellers. 10% from one cruise ship, the Ruby Princess. Australia has got on top of this by closing the border to all but residents and putting those in 14 day quarantine in hotels. The rate of increase of new cases has clearly peaked and in some states the number of active cases has also peaked.

      Although the politicians are still talking up the crisis, the idiot Anna Palaszczuk here in Queensland is still talking about a peak in July to September, there will be a clamour by the end of the month to relax restrictions within states while keeping borders closed.

      For Australia, the cost of the cure is certainly going to be worse than the cost of the virus, we’ve had 34 deaths, compared to, for example, 92 road deaths in February.

  6. Given that dogs are in 1/4 of British homes and its preferable if they crap outside the home, why the f*** would you think it sensible to confine people to their houses.
    The Czechs are now saying that staying indoors is worse for your health, get outside, let UV kill the Virus and practise social distancing outside is all that’s required.
    ( Are they doubling down in fear of the Swedish route being proven successful?)

  7. Regarding flu type bugs being more prevalent in winter. Is this because people spend more time indoors during the cold weather? If this is the case, shutting people up would make things worse wouldn’t it?

    • Very likely.

      Also these pneumonia-type virii thrive best with low temperature and humidity.

      Further, one curently topical issue: sunbathing! Flu infections usually peak in the second half of winter, and it’s been suggested that this is because people’s vitamin D levels are lowest then, due to lack of sunlight. Vitamin D is known to be beneficial is fighting off viral infections.

      It’s currently late summer in Australia & NZ, and their infection rate is much lower than the northern hemisphere’s. The worst is yet to come for them, I think.

      • I’ll have a bet that Australia is already over the worst. The numbers are already very low and getting lower by the day. Queensland had just nine new cases overnight. Because the numbers are so low, Australia is able to track and trace all cases. If the virus isn’t circulating, it can’t infect people, doesn’t matter how cold it gets.

  8. There’s a wee bit in Paradise Lost too:

    “…this new World—compels me now
    To do what else, though damned, I should abhor.”
    So spake the Fiend, and with necessity,
    The tyrant’s plea, excused his devilish deeds.

  9. Should a total lockdown be imposed when the government decide that we are not even allowed to leave our houses, I am faced with a dilemma. I feel that I have a duty to defy this edict in solidarity with MLK. On the other hand, I have a large garden and a well equipped gymnasium so I could comply with the ruling with minimal inconvenience. I have also recently taken several long bike rides and not seen a single copper, so further bike rides would probably not be an issue anyway. Decisions Decisions.

    • Well, the immediate problem is shopping. None of the supermarkets have any slots for online deliveries. Tends to fuck that idea up a bit.

  11. @LR

    Alone you are not. I am with you and have been against lockdowns since before Boris announced UK one

    Japan, Sweden, Taiwan: Keep Calm and Carry On – no lockdowns and no ill effects

    Hitchens gives credit to Lord Sumption today
    https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-8188359/PETER-HITCHENS-deep-velvet-quiet-cities-terrifying-fire-bell-night.html

    Lots of opposition to lockdown in MoS:
    Tory MPs want lockdown ended and rebelling against Hancock’s ever more totalitarian measures which will destroy economy for generations

    Tory MPs and even NHS & PHE staff increasingly angry at Mgt refusing to use private sector

    BBC Marr more concerned Excel Centre not rent free, only reduced rent “Profiteering from crisis”. Strange they didn’t accuse Tesco et al of same for still making peeps pay for food

  12. Sunbathing is Banned
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpFsWzj5ZSE

    +100 Sargon. Hancock & Morgan have lost the plot. Cure worse than disease

    Covid-19 Global Deaths: 69,379

    UK Annual Deaths: >600,000

    The Police State: You will not sunbathe
    The Police State: RoP Child Rape gangs around the UK are still hunting children and inflicting terror on their victims without restriction

    George
    Orwell Would Weep
    Boris Johnson has said he wants to look at decriminalising non-payment of the #TVlicense in the UK, so the #BBC respond with a proposal to put a mandatory tax on broadband in order to fund their ideological agenda. It’s unreal how out of touch these people are. I am quite certain George #Orwell would not approve
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDDc9s7Ufpw

    “We are the glue that holds the nation together”
    Yes, everyone seems united in their contempt for the BBC

    • Now is the time to suspend the TV licence, in order to minimise hardship in these difficult times of course.
      Once suspended for a year or so… it will never be able to be reimposed.

  13. Where I live, in a rural area of South West France, where there are many retirees, there is a natural discipline. The local village 1.500 meters away has shops and people queue, at a distance from one another, outside only allowing one customer in at a time. This is done quite voluntarily. Neighbours go out for walks. Apart from the very small village centre there are no pavements so peoples abodes are set well back from the roads. There is much less traffic and the Gendarmes seem to have eased off a bit. I comprehend that there are civil liberty issues at stake here, however I don’t believe that the French govt. will stamp all over them, as the U.K. govt. is most likely to, when the virus is fully under control.
    I haven’t been outside for more than a fortnight, even into my garden but I have been very busy inside my workshop. Now the temps are pushing past 20 deg. C I’ll get outside a bit more.
    My point is that this situation can be handled sensibly. I realize in the cities the problems are much more acute but there are many videos of the most vile people deliberately contaminating food in supermarkets, playing the most imbecilic jokes and acting in a way no animal ever would.
    This virus is a test for society and in large parts, it’s failing miserably , especially in the U.S.and U.K. as certain sections, ( notably the R.O.P. but there are legions of others ) seem to believe that their selfish “ needs “, dogmatic beliefs and hubristic sense of entitlement exempt them from acting like human beings.

  14. You are not alone.
    What I find the most depressing thing about this is not the social and economic damage inflicted by this panic over a bad flu year (perhaps one characterised by a late surge after a mild start). No it is to discover so many people I had hitherto thought quite level-headed taken up with this panic. “I had not thought [fear of] Death had undone so many”

  15. What I find depressing about the Great Panic is the number of UK born & bred who are prepared to emulate the E German stazi state at the drop of a hat.
    It really gives the lie to “we wouldn’t have cooperated with the Nazis like the French” doesn’t it.
    Equally depressing is the glee with which our challenged Police are departing from the Peelian principles.
    They really aren’t very good without the active cooperation of the community.
    As noted before in a smaller way, the same happened in Scotland when the numpties lowered the blood alcohol limit. Previously most drink drivers were caught as they were grassed up by others as the UK limit was seen as reasonable and proportionate. Now that the police have lost the tacit consent of Joe Public, the headline captures of people the morning after have gone up, but the real drunks are now not getting caught as people are not prepared to phone in.

  18. Boris could be cured using the same therapy the US FDA is now allowing. Hydroxychloroquine and an antibacterial with zinc.
    UK medical establishment still sitting on it, so are they prepared to croak the PM to prove how dangerous the virus is rather than using a quick and easy cheap cure.

    • Correct me if I’m wrong, but I haven’t yet seen or heard anything negative about the Hydroxychloroquine etc treatments. All you ever hear is positive. If there’s no negative effects, why isn’t everyone using it, and perhaps more importantly, why isn’t Joe Public shouting (damn loudly) for it? There are people dying, all over the world, that very likely could be saved with drugs costing but a few dollars. It is horrifying.

      • US Media, excluding Fox*, is against it with all kinds of reasons. Summary OrangeManBad

        Dems hate Trump so much Governor of Nevada banned Hydroxychloroquine minutes after Fauci endorsed it

        PHE is same as Dems/Left, they’d rather people die than agree with Trump – evil, evil people as evidenced on Twatter by those wanting Boris to die

        * https://www.youtube.com/user/FoxNewsChannel/videos

  19. Excellent essay. So very true re St Augustine and MLK Jr. Same for Ben Franklin’s comment. I think our gov was doing it right and then a nutty computer model predicting Armaggedon frightened them. Hence falling in with the authoritarian continentals though opting for a milder form of house arrest. We’ll get through it even though the reasons we may give to be out and about have to pass through a policeman’s ‘reasonableness filter’. That is really too subjective.

    • That, I think, was inevitable. “If we can do it for this, then we can do it for that.” Which is one reason to vigorously oppose it. It’s why I’m deeply unhappy with a two-year sunset clause. It’s why I am unhappy with the whole thing, for every jumped up wannabe dictator will be calling for it to be used to impose their agenda.

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