Get fools worked up

by Les Slater

Speaking about the Conscientious Ojection Hearing Committees and their predominantly RSA influence, Chris Wheeler said "You can really get those bloody old fools worked up. One should give them as many opportunities as possible to get annoyed." "The RSA, said Chris, "is a collection of frustrated old men for whom the only big thing that has happened was the war, Few of them went willingly and few of them are heroes. They have rationalized the fact that they were led like sheep and now hey believe that they were volunteers."

The occasion was the meeting of Te Rangatahi on Sunday 24th.

Chris Wheeler, editor of Cock, was the main speaker. He commented upon his pamphlet "The Conscientious Objector". He spoke about the history of militarism in NZ with emphasis on the First World War the forceful induction into the army of Archibald Baxter and others.

"The present trends could involve NZ in military suppression of revolutionary suppression of wars throughout Asia and quite possibly South America and Africa, as long as NZ is involved in alliances like SEATO and ANZUS." he said. "Those with objections to the war could work within the framework of the legal provisions for registration as a conscientious objector." You may have a moral duty to ignore the system and try to frustrate the administrative machinery.

"The whole idea of a committee set up to determine the sincerity and validity of ones beliefs is farcial." said Chris. "Philosophically and psychologically it is impossible to objectively assess the state of a man's conscience."