It's all downhill - really!

The Films, Videos, and Publications Classification Act 1993 (referred to as the Classification Act) is an Act of Parliament to regulate and classify films, videos and publications in a way that balances the need for freedom of expression with the need to protect society from harm.   The Classification Act created the New Zealand Office of Film & Literature Classification and obligated it to consider social research when making classification decisions and placing age restrictions on material.   Currently people rely on ratings and classifications to advise them of the content of publications and to limit access by those under a specified age to unsuitable material.   The classification system as administered by the Classification Act is used in pre-release intervention.   However, fast developments in technology are blurring the distinctions between services that have traditionally been regulated in several different ways. The difference between supplying...

Here's a word for the day - kakistocracy: a system of government which is run by the worst, least qualified, or most unscrupulous citizens. It's taken me a couple of days, after I 'rage-quit' listening to the interview on RNZ (seriously I did - poor Tony), to gather my thoughts on this and I'm still incensed. Prison. NZ's got some mighty big problems with crime and violent offending and there are serious issues that need to be addressed at the community level and there are some organisations doing fantastic work towards this. Truth is NZ has rising numbers of violent and sexual crime and, despite what some want us to believe, NZ doesn't send people to prison for minor offenses. No matter how you feel about our incarceration rates, causes of crime or the calls to decrease the prison numbers the fact is that when we, as a society, do send people to prison we have an obligation to keep them safe. Astoundingly, after campaigning again...

A friend describes their partner as a militant atheist - that fits me too.   I'm not anti-religion, you're free to wear your  colander  and pray to the  flying spaghetti monster , but I must be free from your beliefs being imposed on me and my children free from being preyed upon. It really is as simple as that. I actively write, comment and oppose religious indoctrination in Playcentres, Kindys and primary schools.   I don't take my child to Playcentre, Kindergarten or school for religion - if I wanted religion in their life I'd take them to church. New Zealand is NOT a christian nation.  From the 2013 census  72% of people under 29 are atheist. 42% of people identify as having no religion and the remaining 58% is made up of all the religions not just christian.  I'm so sick of Christian religion being imposed on children at Playcentres, Kindys and primary schools. So much for so called 'christian morals', they take t...