Australia `won't become a police state': John Howard

[dArKeR]

Australia will not become a "police state" Prime Minister John Howard said yesterday in response to concerns that proposed laws designed to stop radical preaching will undermine basic freedoms.
"You have an obligation to the public to take whatever measures are reasonable and proper to protect the community and that is what I'm sure the overwhelming majority of Australians feel," Howard told the Ten Network.

"And they can rest assured, and they know that, no government is going to turn Australia into a police state in order to protect us against terrorists, we don't need to do that."

http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/world/archives/2005/07/25/2003264986

[Erika]

1. Police state?

Like the U.S. is becoming? Or perhaps England, who shot a legal foreign worker because he wore a coat? England declared a policy of shoot to kill of anyone they deemed a possible "terrorist". They shot and killed a legal Brazilian Catholic.

[puddycat]

2. regarding foreign policy "western ideals" is an oxymoron

from the article: The report said the group described suicide bombers as martyrs and advocated the destruction of Western ideals.

When it comes to foreign policy, isn't "Western ideals" an oxymoron, considering that historically we have't had much to pride ourselves on? Invading Iraq without provocation is just the latest atrocity that we have allowed our government to conduct in our name.

[queeg]

3. No, just maybe SA and Vic----

What americans don't realize is that Johnny Howard is actually a couple steps farther to the right than George W.

I saw him throw a glass of water at a reporter asking questions about immigration policy once---at least we haven't seen George get physically threatening to reporters yet.---other than shooting a few in Iraq that is.

[foreigncorrespondent]

4. Oh bullshit!!!

Howard is so full of shit. If we aren't gonna become a police state, then how come there is now a lot of talk about Australia getting these cameras in place everywhere?

He has taken Australia down the wrong path. Workers have lost rights, people unemployed who refuse work because of company's wanting to force us to sign workers agreements will lose their benefits, now we will have no free speech and big brother watching every move we make.

This is not the country I was born into anymore. :(