Re: Jackboots in Canada

[Eric Murray <ericm@lne.com>]

owner-cypherpunks@sirius.infonex.com writes:
> AP 3/21/97
> 
> Quebec
> 
> Spurred by a new outbreak of bombings, the Canadian government agreed
> Thursday to toughen laws to help Quebec stamp out a war between motorcycle
> gangs that has killed more than 30 people.
> 
> [snip]
> 
> ...Hell's Angels and Rock Machine...have been battling for control of the
> illegal drug trade in Canada.
> 
> Canadian justice minister, Allan Rock, said the measures would include
> broadening laws on search warrants, electronic eavesdropping and bail
> conditions for arrested gang members.


The alternative, proposed by some goverment person (governor?) in Quebec, was
to suspend "individual liberties" for bikers, making it possible to
pull one over at any time, search them, and if explosives are found
assume they're guilty until proven innocent. 

That last part just floored me, how could anyone be willing to throw
away rights like that?  At least here in the US they're not so
obvious about it- the cash (or cars or computers) are seized and
presumed guilty until proven innocent, and of course you can't mount a
defense if everything you own is seized and your bank accounts frozen, but
you're still presumed innocent.  It was that evil CASH that did it.

-- 
   Eric Murray  ericm@lne.com  Network security and encryption consulting.
PGP keyid:E03F65E5 fingerprint:50 B0 A2 4C 7D 86 FC 03  92 E8 AC E6 7E 27 29 AF