Thursday, July 02, 2009

Objecting to 'good moral character'

Speaking to the medicinal cannabis debate last night Lianne Dalziel said;

The problems I see with the Bill are:

The introduction of a complex regulatory framework - with a Medicinal Cannabis Registration Board being established to issue Medicinal Canabis Identification Cards and Designated Agent Identification Cards - A Designated Agent is required to prove him or herself to be of good moral character. I totally object to that phrase being inserted in NZ law.


What is that about? A facet of the religion of 'non-judgementalism', a dogma adhered to fanatically by the Left and promulgated thoughtlessly through various state institutions?

It is hardly surprising that many people now exist in a moral vacuum. If good moral character is archaic and unmentionable, what are we left with?

12 comments:

Anonymous said...

She may be displaying an honest fear of not passing the test herself.

Andrew

deleted said...

She is correct though. Moral character should have no bearing on ones right to put whatever they want in their own body.

Lindsay Mitchell said...

The requirement applies to the gatekeeper. Personally I'd like to think that people is positions of authority and power were of good moral character. Even if my definition is confined to being honest.

Keeping Stock said...

Turei's Bill enabled an illegal substance to be made legal for specified uses. What was to stop the on-sale of cannabis to "non-licensed" users? There needed to be some sort of safeguard.

Lindsay Mitchell said...

Inventory, You wouldn't stop it anyway. Think 'street methadone'.

Lucy said...

'what are we left with?' Her!

Heisenbug said...

She's just being progressive, or "liberal". I seem to recall that once upon a time the unemployment benefit was only available to people of a sober character. Of course that's discrimination, so that had to go... this is just the continuation of making worthless scum more important than those of us who are enslaved to pay for said scum's handouts.

Sus said...

Re "qualifying" for the dole morally, is that true, Heisenbug?

Do you have more details?

I'll always remember my 6th form economics teacher telling us in the late 70s that so few people were on the dole at one time -- either the 50s or 60s -- in Auckland, the staff concerned knew them by their first names, numbering about half a dozen ...

He was a great teacher & a really good guy. And one of the very few, even then, who wasn't a socialist.

Anonymous said...

As a typical labour flunky, she is blowing warm air once again. There is in fact reference to "good moral character" in a number of Acts (typically derived from international treaties, such as International crimes act and arbitrations international investment act). The NZ equivalent is "good character" and that is found in a raft of legislation like the citizenship act, the education standards act and the lawyers and conveyancers act, where there are such things as certificates of good character. Dalziel proclaims some pride in a husband who is a lawyer, yet she doesn't even know this....amazing.

brian_smaller said...

Lindsay - you mentioned Street methadone. Given that methadone users are supposed to take their dose at teh chemist who dispenses it, do you know how the druggies get it (apart from burglary of chemist shops of course)?

They regirgitate it outside and store it for later use or sale.

Lindsay Mitchell said...

Brian, Lovely ain't it? And their takeaways for times when the pharmacy is not open or they are not able to get there.

Sus, 1965. In respect of sickness and invalid benefits "Applicant must be of good moral character and sober habits." Don't know if it applied to the dole as I don't have the yearbook on hand. But the requirement went by the wayside after that time.

It is true that in the 50s only a handful of people ever received the dole. It climbed to hundreds in the 60s and 1,000s in the 70s; tens of thousands in the 80s and peaked at around 170,000 in the 90s. Staggering really.

Lindsay Mitchell said...

One of the reasons so few people were on the dole in the 50s and
60s was the government work schemes. There were small scale winter work schemes (for seasonal workers) whereby central govt funded local authorities for work provided. Also scheme 13 provided a wages subsidy after WW11 for men in poor health and capable of light work only. The numbers on work schemes seem to have fluctuated enormously with 1000s employed in one year but 100s the next.