Please don't spare the New Zealand government. It is shameful how far politicians and police here went out of their way to try and impress. Pathetic, weak and disgusting. We have laws too, and a fair few were broken by NZ agencies.
This seems to be the case for any country when faced with US pressure over copyright issues, whether it's agreeing to one-sided treaties which serve only to protect US content owners, or working with US agencies to track down and apprehend "criminal" infringers anywhere they happen to be in the world.
Everyone just does what America asks of them. It's shocking.
Correct. Anyone remember the time the US drafted the "The Netherlands / The Hague invasion plan"? Target of invasion? The International Criminal Court, if America of US soldiers were ever brought before trial for war-crimes. Seems International means non-us. Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/American_Service-Members%27_Pro...
Hell, they overthrew the elected Prime Minister of Australia because he abolished the military draft, pulled Australian troops out of Vietnam, and was threatening to forbid the renewal of the lease for a US military base.
The right to self-determination is really only something America enjoys. When it needs to, it imposes its will upon other countries, often in the most cruel and twisted possible way.
Gough Whitlam was fired in 1975, as the US was pulling out anyway. He was fired because the Senate had blocked supply, and he was trying to secure alternative funding (which just isn't done). Kerr (the Governor General, who was mostly a figurehead but is technically the acting head of state) and Fraser (leader of the opposition) both suggested compromises. Whitlam thought that he didn't need the Senate or GG's cooperation, and that the whole "Westminister system" was a formality he could do without. So they sacked him.
tl;dr - there was a Constitutional crisis, with the House and Senate disagreeing. The Prime Minister didn't want to negotiate, or call for a new election, so he was removed.
