HAYLEY SORENSEN
asked again and again to give up bit by bit our privacy and our freedom to do as we please without constant supervision and interference. The war on booze reached peak farce recently with the blessedly brief soy sauce ban.
And Territory Police have shown they are more than happy to use and abuse any powers that come their way to stop people drinking.
In August last year, cops used “emergency” powers to shut down the Tennant Creek Hotel for two days. The pub’s owner wasn’t told why, nor was there any opportunity to appeal.
When the pub finally received access to details of the incidents used by cops to justify the shut down through a time-sucking Freedom of Information request, it was clear there was no “emergency”.
In one incident, a woman chucked hot chips at a security guard. Others involved minor scuffles. In several of the inci
“The war on booze reached peak farce with the blessedly brief soy sauce ban”
leaving the guy skidding across the road at high speed. How the rider didn’t wind up critically injured or even dead is anyone’s guess.
In addition to that party trick, Carr is also accused of breaking into a man’s home and assaulting him.
His defence is a simple one. He says he was really drunk and can’t remember any of it. “We drank vodka in our hotel room before we went out, then drank cocktails and drank more vodka after that. I have drunk until I have blacked out but I have never done this before, ever. I can’t really remember most of it. I don’t have a recollection of it.”
The funniest line in the initial news report on Carr’s dents, pub staff did the right thing by calling police after they refused intoxicated would-be patrons entry. For doing the right thing and abiding by the rules, the pub was punished. If you truly trust this — or any — government wholly and completely with your private data you need to lay off the soy sauce.
Hayley Sorensen is the Sunday Territorian’s resident columnist predicament is this one: Carr, who was visiting Bali with a friend, was worried about facing criminal charges.
Let’s give the last word to Downer.
“There are no special laws for Australians overseas,” he wrote. “Foreigners make the laws over there, not us.
“If you’re too dumb or idle to read the travel advisories and too mean to take out travel insurance when you go overseas then you ought to take responsibility for your own behaviour.
“Sure, if there’s a catastrophe like the Bali bombings or you’re trapped in a corruption scam, the government should try to help. But not if you’re too lazy and silly to help yourself.”